Changes and Dealing With It
by BlendedFrog
Summary: Katie Bell is having a hard time dealing with both home life and school life. But when she takes it too far, who can save her? Warning, bit of angst... Katie BellOliver Wood, RR please! COMPLETE!
1. At Home

**Disclaimer:** Most unfortunately, I do not own Katie Bell, Oliver Wood (though I wish I did), or any other characters in the Harry Potter world. They belong to the wonder that is J. K. Rowling. However, I do own the plotline, so please refrain from stealing any of it. Thank you!  
  
This story takes place during Katie's sixth year, Oliver's seventh, and Harry's third. This is a KB/OW fanfic, but I warn you that it's rather dark. If you are hoping for happy, perky Katie, run away. Now!  
  
Some of the stuff that happens in this story is based on my own experience, and some of it is not. Not that that is very helpful. Do you realize that I just said "not" and "that" twice, one after the other? I tend to ramble, that would be my bad. Anyway, on the story!  
  
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Ch. 1 - At Home  
  
"Katie! Katie, are you ever going to wake up?" Katie Bell's mum, simply known as Mum, called up the stairs. Katie roused from bed and glanced at the clock on the bedside table. Oh cripes, it was after eleven.  
  
"I'm up, I'm up," Katie called halfheartedly down the stairs before changing into a pair of jeans and a t-shirt. She looked at herself in the mirror and frowned. 'Ugly,' she thought, 'I'm very ugly.' She had blond hair, but it was long, hard to control, and enjoyed being frizzy. Her eyes just couldn't decide what color they were: in sunlight, they were green; in dim light, they were leaning towards blue; and in regular light, they were a mix between dark blue, green, and brown. Otherwise known as hazel. She glared at her reflection and headed downstairs for what she now had to deem was brunch.  
  
"Finally! Breakfast is over, so you'll have to make yourself something," Mum said as she entered the kitchen. Katie shrugged and grabbed an apple, biting into it and enjoying it's tangy, almost sour taste. "Dave and I are going out for the day, so you'll be left to yourself."  
  
"You're going out again?" Katie said incredulously. Over the entire summer all Mum talked about was Dave. Dave is doing this, Dave is working here, Dave and I are getting married...  
  
"Well, you know..." Mum said.  
  
'No,' Katie thought, 'I don't know. You and Dad have been separate for what, six months? And already you're married to some stupid, cocky little muggle.' Not that there was anything wrong with muggles, of course. It was just step-dad Dave, the most horrible muggle in the universe.  
  
As if on cue, Dave walked in. "Hey, Katie," he said, reaching over the kitchen table to give Mum a kiss. Ugh, it almost made Katie nauseous seeing them snog each other 24/7.  
  
"Where are you two going?" Katie asked, trying to be as casual as possible.  
  
"Mum didn't tell you? We're headed out to downtown London to catch an opera, followed by a dinner at the nicest restaurant around and then to see a late-night movie," Dave explained.  
  
"Brilliant," Katie murmured. Oh yes, that was exciting. Opera, dinner, and a movie! How lame could you get?  
  
"Well, see you later dear," Mum said, kissing her daughter on the forehead. "Oh, and don't forget, less than a week and it's Hogwarts time!"  
  
"Thank God for Hogwarts," Katie breathed, watching Mum and step-dad Dave stroll pleasantly out to the car - which Dave insisted on using instead of the Floo network - and drove off.  
  
Finishing her apple, Katie headed back upstairs to her room and smiled when she saw Twit, her Barn Owl, sitting on the windowsill with a letter attached to it. After carefully untying the letter from Twit's leg, she gave him a few owl treats and let him into his cage, which sat on her dresser.  
  
The letter was from one of her best friends, Alicia Spinnet. It read: 'Hey Katie! I'm back, finally! Aren't you excited? Hogwarts in only one week! When are you going shopping for your school supplies? Lina and I have been planning on going in three days. You want to come? Owl me back with an answer as soon as you have one! Love you, Alicia.'  
  
Katie sighed. After an entire summer of not seeing any of her friends, she wished dearly for a day with them. But, no, Mum had specifically said that they would be shopping the day before Katie left for Hogwarts. No shopping with the clique, then.  
  
'Hi Leesh, sorry but I can't come with you and Lina. Mum and I are shopping the day before we leave, and she said I couldn't make any other plans. Too bad, too, I miss you guys so much! How are-' She was planning on asking, 'How are the boys?" meaning Fred, George, and Oliver, but none of them had owled her all summer, and it didn't seem right to ask how they were if they didn't give a wit about her. So she continued the sentence with, 'How are you and your family doing? And how was Spain? I'm glad you're finally back. Love, Katie.'  
  
~*~  
  
Katie glanced at the clock. One-thirty in the morning and still Mum and step-dad Dave weren't home. Actually, it shouldn't have been a surprise. They were rarely home before one anyway. But still, they were a half-hour late. Katie was allowed to worry about her mum.  
  
Finally, fifteen minutes later, the two traipsed into the house. Katie snuck out of bed and opened her door a crack. She cringed; both of them were good and drunk. 'Well, at least they didn't take the Floo Network. Mum probably wouldn't be able to pronounce anything other than "Ha, Ha."'  
  
~*~  
  
An hour later everything had settled down again, but Katie lay awake, staring at her eyelids and listening to the rare car drive by the house. Since she'd found out about Mum's divorce, and then new marriage, she'd hardly been able to sleep, but lately it had been getting worse. She was going to sleep between 2 and 3 in the morning, and waking up later and later. But she just couldn't get her mind to shut up. Finally, just as the clock turned 3, she fell asleep.  
  
"Katie! Cripes, Kate, what's gotten in to you?" Mum asked, shaking her daughter awake at noon. "Go to sleep earlier!"  
  
"I will, Mum," Katie murmured, waving her mother's arms off of her. "I'm gonna take a shower."  
  
She let the water run cold to wake her up, and then set it at an almost scalding hot. She liked the heat. After spending about fifteen minutes under the water, she turned the stream off and stepped out. She only dressed in her smallclothes, though, before heading back into the bathroom and stepping onto the scale.  
  
127 and a half. 'I've gained wait,' Katie thought with quite a bit of annoyance. She stepped off the scale and looked into the mirror, assessing her tummy area. It stuck out. Yes, it most certainly did. 'Hmm, what have I eaten lately?' she wondered. 'There was that apple yesterday morning. but I have an apple every morning, it can't have been that. What did I have for lunch? Oh, I forgot,' she almost chuckled, but didn't. 'I don't eat lunch. It must have been the steak Mum left for me for dinner. Yuck, steak is a nasty, fat-filled piece of cow. No more steak.'  
  
And with that, Katie finished getting dressed and headed down to breakfast.  
  
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So, how is it? Horrible? Stupid? Delightfully interesting? LoL, ok, maybe not that. No flames, please, I beg of you, but constructive criticism is welcome. Note I say CONSTRUCTIVE.  
  
Next chappie Katie's got a date with step-dad Dave. Ooh, and won't that be exciting? R/R or you'll find all your knickers missing in the morning!! 


	2. A Day With Stepdad Dave

Thank you sooo much to my one reviewer, Sunnyflower2005! I'm so glad you liked the first chappie! Oh, and if you're not Sunnyflower2005, and you're reading this, REVIEW! Please! Anyway, if you need a disclaimer, check the first chapter. It's there, right at the top. Ok, not much else to say, so on to the second chapter!  
  
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Ch. 2 - A Day With Step-dad Dave  
  
Katie opened her eyes begrudgingly at seven-fifteen the morning before she left for Hogwarts, intent on getting back to a regular sleeping schedule. Hopefully the sleeping aid she'd taken the night before had helped. or maybe she'd just made her mind shut up and let her sleep. Who knew?  
  
Downstairs, Mum and Dave were cooking pancakes. Katie watched with hidden disgust as they slathered butter over the pan and ladled huge dollops of pancake batter over the butter. It sizzled and cooked for a few minutes and finally they turned the pancakes over, finished their cooking, and dropped them on a plate before turning back and putting more greasy butter down.  
  
"Good morning, Kate. Do you want some pancakes?" Dave asked.  
  
"No, thank you," Katie replied, ignoring the fact that her step-father had called her 'Kate.'  
  
Mum frowned. "But we've got all these pancakes made!"  
  
"I'm just not hungry," Katie said, loudly enough that no one else could hear her stomach growling. "All I want is an apple."  
  
"Well, I guess we could always save them for later," Dave said. He watched as Katie picked out a bruise-free green apple and bit into it, smiling at the taste. 'I love apples.' "Why do you eat so many apples?"  
  
Katie gave Dave a blank stare. What kind of question was that? Instead of answering, she turned to Mum and said, "So when are we leaving for Diagon Alley?"  
  
"Actually," Dave began, and was met with a surprised glance from Katie. "Actually, Mum and I decided it would be better if you and I went together."  
  
'Better?' Katie thought, 'Better?! How can a shopping trip with step-dad Dave be better than a girls' day out with Mum?' Katie and Mum had been shopping at Diagon Alley together since Katie's first year. Once or twice, Katie's Dad had come too, but usually he was too busy at the Ministry of Magic. But Dave? Dave was a muggle, for crying out loud!  
  
"Mum, why can't we go together?" Katie whined. Silently she kicked herself; whining was low.  
  
"The Ministry needs me today, dear," Mum said with a sad smile. "I took a day off at the beginning of the week, when Dave and I went to London. I can't miss it again!"  
  
Katie frowned. Mum only worked three days a week at the Ministry, why did this have to be one of those work days?  
  
"Go get ready, Katie, we're leaving in half an hour," Dave said briskly after finishing his meal. Katie opened her mouth to protest, but closed it after a moment. It was pointless to argue with Dave and Mum. So she headed back upstairs to shower, dress, and scour her room for as many galleons, sickles, and knuts she could find.  
  
Forty-five minutes later Dave took the car keys out of one of the kitchen drawers and gestured towards the front door, but Katie shook her head. "There is no way I'm riding in a muggle car to Diagon Alley.  
  
"Why?" Dave asked.  
  
"Because I'm a witch," Katie replied coolly, and headed to the living room, where the fireplace sat. She took a handful of floo powder out of the pot near the hearth, tossed it in and yelled "Diagon Alley!" before jumping into the place and shutting her eyes tight. After a few moments she stumbled back out, grinning as she saw Diagon Alley around her.  
  
"Oof!" she heard, and turned to see step-dad Dave lying on the floor, covered in soot. She couldn't help but laugh as she picked him up and dusted him off.  
  
"You're telling me Mum's never taken you through the Floo Network?" Katie asked as they walked down the alley, but Dave didn't answer. He was staring around him, transfixed at the all the wizards and witches milling about, the stores that sold everything from broomsticks to Quidditch supplies, and the multitude of students age eleven to seventeen scurrying around.  
  
"This is... amazing," Dave breathed after maybe ten minutes. Katie sighed. At this rate, she would never get her shopping done. Pulling out the list of supplies she needed, Katie took the poor muggle by the hand and headed in the direction of the bookstore.  
  
"I'm just going to collect the books I need, you wait here by the door," Katie said, physically placing step-dad Dave to the left of the door. Then she quickly headed towards the books, collecting them all and checking them off on her list. When she returned to the front of the store, Dave was involved in a conversation with a wizard in his mid-thirties.  
  
"Ah, here she is! Katie, this is Larry Turshel; Larry, this is my daughter, Katie."  
  
Katie was so surprised at Dave's last words that she didn't even try to shake Larry Turshel's hand. She stared at Larry for a moment before turning her gaze upon Dave. Then she left the bookstore without a word.  
  
Dave caught up with Katie at the apothecary, and watched mutely as she gathered the potions ingredients she needed. She dropped them all in a rather large cauldron and hauled it over to the potions man, completely refusing Dave's help.  
  
"Thirteen galleons, seven sickles, please," the apothecary man said in a reedy voice. Katie fished out the money and paid.  
  
"Would you mind if I kept this here while I finished my shopping?" she asked the man. He nodded, picked the cauldron up, and set it behind the desk.  
  
"We close at dusk," he said, and Katie nodded and walked out.  
  
Dave followed her as she did her shopping, not daring to verbalize. For that, Katie was grateful. Hopefully by the time he brought up the courage to say something, she would have cooled down enough. She doubted it.  
  
Finally, their shopping done and the cauldron returned to Katie's arms, Dave spoke. "It's right around dinnertime. D'you want to get a bite to eat while we're here?"  
  
With nothing better to say, Katie nodded and followed Dave as they strolled through Diagon Alley once more. Finally they found a nice, clean, small restaurant, and settled down at the one of the tables.  
  
"Something to drink?" the waiter asked.  
  
"I'll have a butterbeer, please," Katie said immediately. It wasn't on her diet, she knew, and she would probably gain an excessive amount of weight from it, but butterbeers were the one thing Katie couldn't live without. And with Dave here to torment her, she decided to indulge.  
  
"I'll have the same," Dave said. Within minutes the butterbeers arrived, along with two menus. Katie took a large swallow and Dave followed suit, but immediately he blanched.  
  
"A little young for beer, aren't you, Katie?" he asked.  
  
Katie sighed. Not only was Dave a muggle, he was an American muggle.  
  
"Don't tell me what I can and cannot drink," Katie replied as casually as she could.  
  
"I'm not telling you anything, Kate, I was just-"  
  
"Don't call me Kate."  
  
"Ok."  
  
Silence. Katie opened her menu and glared at it. Most of the choices were some form of meat, pasta or white bread, lavishly buttered. Finally she found the salads, and, now knowing her order, listened as Dave ordered first.  
  
"I'll have... a hamburger with all the fixings, a baked potato on the side, and... Do you think I could have a slice of that delicious chocolate cake right there?" he asked, pointing to a picture.  
  
"Of course, sir. And for you, madam?"  
  
Katie swallowed hard. "Yes, I'd like the number three salad please, with green peppers."  
  
"What kind of dressing would you like? We have Ranch, French, the Chef's Special-"  
  
"No dressing, please."  
  
"Very good then. Any dessert?"  
  
"None."  
  
"Your food will be ready shortly." With that, he took the menus and hurried away.  
  
Dave played with the napkin in his lap, and Katie stared off into the distance, trying to calculate how many calories she'd ingested that day.  
  
"You don't eat much, do you, Kate-y?" Dave asked, a little hesitant on pronouncing Katie's name correctly.  
  
"No, I don't."  
  
"Why?"  
  
'Because my stomach shrank. It's really quite helpful,' Katie thought. Instead of saying this, she replied, "I just don't get hungry, that's all."  
  
"You're awfully thin. Maybe you should..."  
  
"I'm perfectly healthy."  
  
Dave nodded. For a moment Katie felt bad for him; she was being awfully hard on the man. He was in love with her mother, yes, but he couldn't change that. He hadn't meant to steal Dad's spot.  
  
"Listen, Kate-y, I'm sorry for what I said in the bookstore today," the man said in a rather small voice.  
  
"Then why did you say it?" Katie asked, trying not to sound as demanding as she felt.  
  
"I just - I don't really know, actually. I think perhaps I could call you my daughter without you getting very mad at me-"  
  
"Please," Katie whispered, "Please, never call me your daughter. I'm not your daughter, and you're not my father." Tears were swelling in her eyes. She blinked them back rapidly and looked up at the ceiling. "My father is Isaac Bell. Mum married him seventeen years ago, and divorced him in February of this year. And no matter how hard you try, you will never replace him."  
  
Dave opened his mouth to reply, but the food had come. He sighed audibly and began eating his hamburger. Katie nodded, filled her fork with salad, and ate in complete silence.  
  
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Hmm, that was a bit depressing, now, wasn't it? Poor Katie... poor Dave! I'm sorry to say that if you didn't like this chapter, you probably won't like the rest. So, don't flame me, I beg, just leave.  
  
Next chapter, Katie finally heads off to Hogwarts! As this is set in the third book, you'll just have to deal with the dementors. Must follow the book!  
  
R/R or I'll steal Oliver's broom! (Hmm, that sounds fun...) 


	3. The Hogwarts Express

Ack, it's been so long since I updated! You must forgive me, summer's soooo hectic for me! Don't worry, to make up for it I'll start writing the next chappie immediately! Thank you once again, Sunflower2005! Tell all your friends to R/R! And a huge thanks to my second reviewer, Lacie! And my third reviewer, ZeldaDragon: such compliments, I'm flattered. And look at that! My FOURTH reviewer! I'm afraid to say there isn't much Oliver in this chapter, Griffindor Quidditch Gal, but the next one is loaded, I promise.  
  
I've tried to make the part with the dementors relatively short and sweet. As no dementor comes into the compartment Katie's in, you'll forgive me for leaving out the feeling of cold. I just read the third book, and it didn't happen until the dementor actually came into the compartment. I'm a perfectionist, my apologies.  
  
And on to the story!  
  
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Chapter 3 - The Hogwarts Express  
  
Katie woke up the next morning to the sound of an annoyingly loud alarm clock. She hit the sleep button and sat up groggily, realizing that she'd woken four hours earlier than the morning before. The weariness wore off quickly, though, when it dawned on her exactly what day it was, and with a happy heart she leapt into the shower excitedly. She was too excited to weigh herself even, just dressed quickly, dried her hair, and headed downstairs.  
  
Dave was sitting at the kitchen table munching on a bowl of cereal. Mum sat next to him, reading the Daily Prophet. Both looked surprised when Katie nearly bounced in.  
  
"Hogwarts today!" Katie chimed, absently grabbing an apple, red this time, and taking a big bite.  
  
"Have you packed everything?" Mum asked.  
  
"I started, but I haven't finished yet," Katie admitted.  
  
Mum glanced at her watch. "King's Cross is an hour and a half away, so we should leave by. nine, I suppose. Can you be ready?"  
  
"Yes, of course," Katie said, and after finishing her apple and a tall glass of water, jogged upstairs to finish her packing. A snowy owl was sitting on the window sill, hooting impatiently, while Twit hooted back.  
  
"Good morning, Einstein," Katie said to the owl, taking the letter off it's leg, giving it owl treats and letting it drink out of Twit's water bowl. The two knew each other, so it wasn't a horrible mess.  
  
Katie opened the letter to find Angelina's obvious scrawl. It read: 'Hey, sorry you couldn't come with Leesh and I to Diagon Alley the other day. It wasn't much fun, raining all over the place, but not horrible. Fred and George went with us. They express their regrets that they haven't owled you - or any of us, for that matter. Their silly owl got all sick, and they hadn't a single owl to use. Well, send a letter back with Einstein, and be quick about it, I've got to get him packed and ready to go to King's Cross! Love you, Lina.'  
  
It was good to hear that Fred and George didn't hate Katie. And it was relatively nice to hear that, had Katie gone with Angelina and Alicia, she would have returned home completely soaked. But still, Lina hadn't mentioned Oliver. 'Was he there with them? No, probably not... She would have said something about him, wouldn't she have?' Katie wondered. 'Maybe... Maybe Oliver was there, but he didn't have an excuse for not owling me. Maybe he hates me!'  
  
Katie was appalled at the thought; she and Oliver had been long-time friends. But things could change over the summer.  
  
She found parchment, a quill, and ink, and replied, 'Hi Lina, it's ok, I had fun with-' Quickly she scribbled out the 'with.' She couldn't put Dave, as she'd told no one about Mum new marriage, or even her divorce, but she couldn't put Mum either. She couldn't lie to Angelina! 'I had fun in Diagon Alley anyway. Finally got all my supplies, at least. Who do you suppose is the new DADA teacher? Let's hope he's better than the last two! I'll see you at King's Cross. Can't wait for Hogwarts! Love, Kate.'  
  
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On the way to King's Cross, Katie silently wondered if Dave would be joining her and Mum on Platform 9 ¾. It seems obvious that he would do so, but if Fred, George, Oliver, Angelina, or Alicia saw him with Mum instead of Dad, what could she say? 'Oh, no worries, it's just Mum's, err, psychiatrist?' Right, they would believe that.  
  
She didn't have to worry about it, though. As they pulled up to King's Cross, Dave said to Mum, "I'll just wait for you here with the car, ok, hun?" He turned to Katie and asked, "Unless you mind?"  
  
"No, it's alright," Katie replied, trying to hide her relief. Mum kissed Dave and she and Katie got out, briskly finding a trolley to stick Katie's heavy trunk and Twit's cage on and heading towards Platforms 9 and 10. Katie and Mum stood next to each other facing the wall, talking casually as they headed towards it. They passed through easily and Katie found herself staring at the magnificent train that was the Hogwarts Express, billowing smoke and all. She was immediately engulfed in hugs by both Alicia and Angelina, and broke into fits of laughter at the sudden happiness she felt.  
  
"Finally! We haven't seen you all summer!" Leesh exclaimed when she and Lina had let Katie go.  
  
Katie continued to giggle, much unlike her. "I know! I've been sooo bored!"  
  
"Oh, when we get on the train, I have to tell you about Spain," Alicia said. She produced a wide grin, which probably meant that she'd met some hot Spanish guy and had loads of stories to tell about him.  
  
"Well, I'll see you when you come back, ok, Kate?" Mum asked.  
  
"See you then," Katie replied with a hug.  
  
"I love you, sweetie."  
  
"Love you too, Mum."  
  
And Katie, Alicia, and Angelina jumped onto the Hogwarts Express. As they looked for a good compartment, Lina asked, "So where was your Dad? He always comes with you to see you off."  
  
Katie had talked to Dad twice over the summer, once when he and Mum had taken her out to dinner and told her about the separation in February, and a second time about half-way through July when they told her that Dad would be moving to some remote town in the middle of nowhere and would see Katie when she came to visit him during Christmas. That's why Katie wouldn't be seeing Mum during Christmas, but after the entire year.  
  
"Eh, he was... out of town. Couldn't make it." Katie shrugged. Crap, she was already starting to lie to them, and she knew it wouldn't stop there.  
  
"Katie!"  
  
Suddenly the girl was engulfed in a second set of hugs, this time by two boys with shockingly red hair. "Lovely to see you," Fred said.  
  
"Yes, a joy," George added. They briskly produced the same wide smiles.  
  
"The same to you twoo," Katie replied, stretching the last word to mean "two" and "too." She'd done it every year since second year.  
  
"Well, we finally got our owl working again," George told the three of them as they started walking again.  
  
"Just in time for school, of course," Fred muttered.  
  
Katie shrugged and they entered a compartment already taken up by one person. One very, very tall person.  
  
"Hey, Oliver," Alicia said with a grin, giving the boy a hug. Angelina followed, and Oliver finally laid eyes on Katie. He laughed that deep, Scottish laugh.  
  
"Shrunk, have you, Kate?" he asked with a lopsided smile as he engulfed her in hugs. It was true; he was at least a head taller than her by now. She didn't understand why he said it to her only, though, not Leesh and Lina as well.  
  
"You have gotten smaller, haven't you?" Fred asked. This was the first year Katie had been looking up at Fred and George as well. She was about up to their noses.  
  
"Don't pester me!" Katie exclaimed with a laugh. "What about Leesh and Lina?"  
  
The two stood on either side of her and Katie gasped. She was the shortest! Could this be possible?  
  
"Well, someone forgot their calcium over the summer," George said as they settled down into their seats and the train started off.  
  
"Speaking of summer, I still have to tell you about Spain!" Leesh shouted suddenly, and dove into a longwinded explanation of the previous two months. Katie was intrigued the first ten minutes, but by the end she'd resorted to muttering, "Mmm hmm" and "Wow, exciting" at the correct intervals only. Sometimes Alicia could be more than a little dull.  
  
"What have you done this summer, Oliver?" Katie asked when Alicia had finished, dying to know why he hadn't owled her. When she said it, though, he looked a little confused.  
  
"I was at my Quidditch camp all summer, remember?" he asked.  
  
Katie slapped her forehead. "I forgot all about it!" For the last half of school the year before, the only thing Oliver had talked about was the three-month-long Quidditch camp he would be attending during the summer. He'd explained too many times to count that this could mean the difference between him getting on a professional Quidditch team or being stuck at a sorry job at the Ministry.  
  
"How could you have possibly forgotten, Kate?" Fred asked incredulously. "He talked about it so much I could have recited his exact words in my sleep!"  
  
Katie laughed; Fred was being completely serious.  
  
"How was your summer, then?" Oliver asked.  
  
For a moment Katie was silent. Tell the group about the divorce and remarriage, or tell them she'd had a lovely summer and all was well? They'd find out eventually, of course, but Katie nearly physically shuddered at the questions she'd be asked if she revealed the secret now. So, plastering on a smile that she hoped everyone would believe, she replied, "Oh, it was fun. We didn't do much. no vacations or anything, I mean, but it was ok."  
  
Oliver had that confused look about him again, but before he could say anything there was a loud pop and a shower of confetti. Katie nearly screamed and looked over at Lina, who was busy shouting at the twins.  
  
"You said you wouldn't try anything until we got to Hogwarts!" she yelled, holding the remains of one of their fake wands.  
  
"We couldn't resist!" George wheezed through his laughter. "It was such perfect timing!"  
  
Of course, by now Twit, Einstein, and the other owls were hooting angrily at everyone, and with Fred and George laughing, Angelina yelling, and Katie, Alicia, and Oliver trying to decide whether to keep their cool or burst out laughing and risk serious injury from Lina, all thoughts of the previous summer had dissipated.  
  
**************  
  
They weren't far from Hogwarts, maybe a half hour or less. Fred and Oliver were playing a regular game of cards, while Alicia was reading a book and Lina was dozing on George's shoulder while he absentmindedly played with her hair. Katie wondered if the two would finally realize their undying love and go out, but she doubted it. The two were hopeless.  
  
She turned her eyes on the card game. Oliver and Fred playing what looked like Speed, but she couldn't know for sure. Her eyes wandered over to Oliver. 'How could I have possibly suspected him for hating me? We've been friends since our second year, and there's no way one summer could change that. Of course, when I left for Hogwarts last year, Mum and Dad loved each other - or at least seemed to - and by the time I returned the two had separated.' She still didn't know exactly what had happened that summer. Mum and Dad had never specified.  
  
"If you keep looking at him with those glazed eyes, he's going to know you're in love with him," Alicia whispered in Katie's ear, causing her to jump.  
  
"I wasn't staring at him with 'glazed eyes,'" Katie whispered back, accompanied with a death glare.  
  
"Yeah, right, keep thinking that," Leesh murmured and thankfully continued to read her book. Katie returned her gaze to Oliver.  
  
Ok, maybe she had had a slight crush on the boy since their fourth year. But how was she to help it? He was a tall, muscular Quidditch player who had no idea every girl in the school drooled over him. He treated Katie like an equal, even though she couldn't even begin to be as good as him at Quidditch.  
  
Suddenly the train slowed to a stop, breaking Katie away from her thoughts once again. Fred glanced at his watch and muttered, "We can't be at Hogwarts yet."  
  
Katie wiped condensation off the glass and peered out at the darkness. "I think... I think someone's actually getting on..."  
  
"I've never heard of-" Oliver stopped talking as the lights went out and everything became really, really dark. Katie shuddered; she was afraid of the dark. Very, very afraid. She couldn't see her hand in front of her face, let alone see if anyone was coming towards her.  
  
Katie jumped and swallowed a scream as the compartment door slid open and someone tumbled in.  
  
"Who the bloody hell - Malfoy!" Fred gasped. "What are you doing in here?"  
  
"D-d-d-dementors!" Malfoy shuddered, and Katie felt him curl up in a ball on the floor. Suddenly everyone got very quiet. Why were dementors on the Hogwarts Express? The thought of a dementor coming into the compartment and - and stealing someone's soul...  
  
Katie leapt up, trodding on Malfoy as she hurried to close the compartment door. Closing her eyes against the dark she fumbled back to her seat.  
  
"Ouch! That's me!" Oliver yelped as Katie sat down on him.  
  
"Oh I'm sorry!" Katie gasped, leaping up and finding her own seat. By the time the lights came back on the train started again, she'd broken into a sweat.  
  
No one spoke. Malfoy quickly realized the lights were back on and righted himself, brushing off his robes and tripping out of the compartment. George, unable to contain himself, burst into laughter. Soon Katie was laughing too, and with the darkness and dementors gone, she relaxed and let herself cool down for the last ten minutes of the train ride.  
  
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Hope you enjoyed it and it wasn't horribly, disgustingly boring. I had hoped to also put in the feast for the start of school, which with Katie's attitude about food will be interesting, but that'll have to wait for the next chapter. Along with that feast, Katie will also have a run-in with her arch-nemesis, Marcus Flint! Bum-bum-bum!  
  
R/R or I'll sick my pet hippogriff on you! 


	4. A Feast and A Meeting

I just keep getting more and more reviews! Don't forget to tell all your friends about this story! Please! Sunnyflower2005, thanks once again for your continued reviews! Tinkerbell, I added a few more pranks with this chappie, hope you like. Sequ3stered and Gryffindor Quidditch Gal, thanks very much for your support. loiloi, finish reading! Sorry, can't make any promises there. Lacie, I would personally love Hogwarts food, it always sounded so good. Professor Scatterbrain, I probably should have made that more clear, Oliver didn't owl Katie (or anyone, for that matter) because there were no owls available at the camp. Sorry about that. Katie, thanks for reviewing, I picked Katie (and Oliver) because they've always been my favorite older characters of the book, and I never really liked writing fanfics about the main characters. Wiccan-One14: such compliments, I'm so happy. (  
  
I feel so special! Seriously, keep R/Ring! I don't know exactly where I'm gonna go with this story, any ideas? Thankies much, now on to the story!  
  
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Ch. 4 - A Feast and a Meeting  
  
"Firs' years! Firs' years this way!" Katie heard Hagrid call as the many Hogwarts students made their way away from the Hogwarts Express, all dressed in dark robes and no doubt fingering their wands. She smiled as she followed the tall Oliver through the pack and into a carriage, with the Weasley twins, Alicia, and Angelina following close behind. They crammed themselves in and settled down as comfortably as possible as the carriage started off.  
  
"Ouch! Fred, you just punctured my foot!" Lina exclaimed, pulling her foot away from Fred's.  
  
Fred glared at his shoes. "It's these silly shoes. They've got 'extra traction' on the bottoms, but they're really just cleats. I don't know why Mum bought them for me, but it was a birthday present so I promised I'd wear them."  
  
"You've got your old ones, right?" Oliver asked, bearing a rather scared expression.  
  
"Of course, they're in my trunk," Fred said. "Accio tennis shoes!"  
  
"FRED!" Katie howled as her tennies came flying off her feet to smack Fred in the face. Three more pairs of shoes - Oliver's, Alicia's, and George's - followed suit.  
  
"Ouch! Ow! Attack of the shoes!" Fred shouted, pushing the many shoes across the carriage. They proceeded to fly around, hitting anyone they happened to come in contact with.  
  
"Grab your shoes!" Katie ordered, reaching out and snatching her shoes from the air. The others, hiding under books and human shields, also managed to grab their shoes. Katie glared at Fred, who was trying to hide a grin.  
  
"Well, didn't know that would happen," he said in a soft voice.  
  
"Cripes, Fred, be smart," Katie muttered.  
  
"Thank god I was wearing sandals," Lina commented. The carriage lurched to a stop, and all six of them managed to escape in one piece. Spirits lifted, they linked arms and headed into Hogwarts castle, "Wizard of Oz" style.  
  
"Welcome!" Headmaster Dumbledore boomed after the Sorting of the new first years had taken place and everyone had settled down. Katie listened as he explained about the dementors, and risked a shudder at the thought of them being in the school. She loathed the creatures, with their black cloaks and decaying bodies and ragged breaths...  
  
"On a happier note," Dumbledore said, breaking Katie from her thoughts, "I am pleased to welcome two new teachers to our ranks this year." He proceeded to introduce one Professor Lupin, who was a wizard in shabby clothes that would be teaching Defense Against the Dark Arts. Katie immediately had a soft spot for him, and she noticed as she clapped politely that Harry Potter and his friends seemed to love the man. 'I wonder why?'  
  
She was a little disappointed that poor Professor Kettleburn was gone, but she wasn't too surprised that Hagrid was the new Care of Magical Creatures teacher. Not only did he love beasts of all shapes and sizes, he was the only man alive that would assign students a book that bit.  
  
"Well, I think that's everything of importance. Let the feast begin!" Dumbledore exclaimed, and suddenly there was so much food in front of Katie that she gasped, even though she'd gone through this five times before. She visibly paled as she watched her friends - the Weasley twins especially - grab as much food as possible and pile their plates high before digging in to the feast. Katie remembered in her first, second, third and even fourth years, when she'd done the same and hadn't a care in the world. But now, as she stared frantically around for apples, she wondered why in hell she'd ever been that careless.  
  
"Aren't you hungry, Katie?" Alicia, who sat on Katie's left and was currently devouring a leg of chicken, asked through bites.  
  
"I had a huge lunch," Katie said in a quiet voice, so soft Leesh barely heard her.  
  
"At least have a little," Lina, sitting on Katie's right, chimed in. "Try the pumpkin tart; it's better than ever!"  
  
Katie forced a smile and took a sliver of pumpkin tart. She ate it quickly, and though it tasted splendid, all she could think about was the fat settling into her stomach. She briskly found some grapes - fruit had no fat - and finally an apple, and after a small sip of pumpkin juice, excused herself.  
  
"Where're you going, Kate?" Oliver asked, as she started to walk away.  
  
"Um... bathroom," Katie explained quickly. Oliver nodded slowly and watched as the girl walked hurriedly away.  
  
'Poor Oliver,' she thought as she sat on the steps outside the Great Hall, waiting for the feast to end. 'He must think I'm horrible, walking out of the Great Hall during a feast. But I just can't stand it in there with all that... food...' Her stomach gave a lurch and she stopped thinking of food for fear of puking up her grapes and apple. She was too busy settling her stomach to notice the footsteps, heavy as they were, coming towards her.  
  
"Well, well, my dear Katie, how pleasant to see you," a husky voice said softly. Katie once again paled as she looked up and saw Marcus Flint, captain of the Slytherin Quidditch team, standing over her with a wicked grin on his face.  
  
"Stay away from me, Flint," the girl whispered. She rose and took a few steps back. Marcus was between her and the Great Hall, which of course was her only escape.  
  
"Why? I'm not going to... do anything to you," Marcus said slowly, closing the gap between them in a step. Katie tried to back up and found herself pinned against the wall. Frantically she tried to shove him away, but he grabbed her wrists and pinned her there, his horrible grin still stuck on his face.  
  
"No escape this time, eh Katie?" he leered. Then, his expression suddenly changing, he brought his rough, calloused hand up and caressed the younger girl's face. "Why, Katie? Why can't you just accept it and go with the flow?"  
  
"Because you're a vile man with no sense of respect for women!" Katie snapped quickly, forcing her wrists from the one hand that held them and climbing three stairs.  
  
Flint ground his teeth in frustration. "Don't get me started, Bell," he warned, once again closing the seemingly huge gap in a step, grabbing the front of her robes, and raising a fist.  
  
"Do NOT touch her," another voice said suddenly. Katie watched as Oliver leapt the steps and shoved Flint tumbling back down them. Marcus immediately righted himself and Katie grabbed Oliver before he could pummel the Slytherin.  
  
"Don't get in trouble on your first day back," she whispered, and Oliver stopped resisting.  
  
The two watched as Flint brushed his robes off and checked to make sure his wand hadn't broken. Then, he casually pointed the wand at Oliver and murmured, "I hope you realize you can't protect her forever." He made as if to jinx the two of them, laughed, and wandered back into the Great Hall.  
  
Suddenly Katie felt very weak. She sank to the floor, completely devoid of any emotion whatsoever. Oliver turned back to her and knelt, his chocolate brown eyes looking at her sadly.  
  
"What was that all about?" he asked.  
  
Katie took a few deep breaths and wrenched her eyes from the Quidditch captain. It was useless telling him, especially with him in his last year. The first thing he would do would be to get the Weasley twins, and then the three of them would risk everything and just kill Marcus then and there. No, that certainly wouldn't do. So, Katie stood up, swallowed carefully, and said in a calm voice, "Nothing. Flint's just jealous that we play so much better than his poor Slytherin team, even though they fly Nimbus 2001s."  
  
Oliver immediately broke into a grin. 'Cripes, all you have to do is imply Quidditch and everything else is forgotten,' Katie thought with a smile. "Well, we'll see how he handles us this year, eh? Last year for me, Katie, and there's no way I'm leaving Hogwarts without that Quidditch Cup under my belt!"  
  
"Not a chance!" Katie agreed heartily as the two headed towards the common room. "We'll beat those Slytherins so bad they'll cry!"  
  
"But to do that we've got to get our strategy down," Oliver said, suddenly very serious. Katie stopped herself from rolling her eyes. "I think we should start practicing earlier this year. If we can beat the Slytherins in our first game, the Hufflepuffs and - Fortuna Major - Ravenclaws will come easily."  
  
"How did you know the password?" Katie asked as they climbed through the portrait hole.  
  
"How didn't I? Percy was sitting next to me at the feast, and all he does is spout about his Head Boy responsibilities," Oliver said with a sigh. The two of them settled down on a couch, and there was silence for a while as they watched the fire crackle in a hearth. "So, em, feeling better?"  
  
"Much," Katie replied with a nod.  
  
"And you're going to eat breakfast tomorrow morning, right?" Oliver asked softly. Katie chanced a glance at him and found that he was staring directly at her. He wouldn't let the question slip.  
  
"Of course. I always eat breakfast," Katie told him truthfully. Silently she thought, 'An apple a day...'  
  
"Great!" Oliver said. He looked quite a bit more relieved. "Well, how about a game of Wizard's Chess then?"  
  
"Sure," Katie said with a slow grin. "If you really think I can't beat you to a pulp..."  
  
Oliver barked a laugh. "What? You, beat me? At Wizard's Chess? Tell me, Katie, have you had a little too much Butterbeer?"  
  
"You know they don't serve Butterbeer at school," Katie said briskly. "But you're great friends with Fred and George, and those sneaks always have Butterbeer. I'm sure you didn't hesitate to enjoy a bit, what with your gloating."  
  
They settled down to their chess game and played well into the night. Katie won.  
  
***************************  
  
Katie woke up groggily the next morning to the sounds of Alicia and Angelina shouting at each other.  
  
"You STOLE my brand new shirt!" Leesh yelled.  
  
"Only because you pilfered my favorite necklace!" Lina shouted back.  
  
"You said I could borrow it!"  
  
"Borrow, not have for an extended amount of time!"  
  
"Stop screaming," Katie grumbled, smacking the two over the head, taking her clothes to the shower and turning scalding water on.  
  
"Glad you're finally awake, we were worried you'd died," Katie could hear Alicia saying over the pounding water.  
  
"Why would I die? Still two more years of Hogwarts to trudge through," Katie replied. She washed quickly, made sure both girls were out of the bathroom, stepped out, and dressed in her smallclothes. Despite her efforts, her stomach area didn't seem any smaller, and of course Hogwarts had no scale with which to check. This would be a tough year.  
  
After fully dressing and drying her hair, Katie was dragged down the stairs by two very hungry sixth-years. In the common room, Fred and George were chugging what appeared to be coffee.  
  
"Since when do you two drink coffee?" Angelina asked.  
  
"Since the tea ran out and there's no more caffeine," Fred said, setting his mug down only a moment before George, who scowled and briskly stood up on one of the tables.  
  
"Hear ye, hear ye! A bet's a bet, so listen up!" he began as the common room hushed. "I'm a little teapot, short and stout! Here is my handle, here is my spout!" George proceeded to sing the entire song twice, complete with movements, while the common room roared with laughter. Finally, grinning even though he was apple red, he took a bow and leapt down.  
  
"Down to breakfast, shall we?" he asked, taking Angelina by the arm and leading the five of them down. Oliver was already seated at the Gryffindor table, munching thoughtfully on a piece of jellied toast. Fred and George sat next to Oliver, while Alicia, Lina, and Katie took the other side. Moments later Harry Potter and his friends Ron and Hermione sat down next to George. Katie couldn't even pretend not to hear the Slytherins shrieking at him. She'd heard of his ordeal with the dementors.  
  
"New third-year course schedules," George said to the three as he passed them on after handing Katie and the other girls their schedules. "What's up with you, Harry?"  
  
"Malfoy," Ron informed. Katie zoned them out at she peered down her schedule.  
  
"What've you got first?" Lina asked.  
  
"Muggle Studies. You?" Katie replied.  
  
Lina shuddered. "Arithmancy. Horrible subject, if you ask me."  
  
"Look, Katie, we've got Muggle Studies together!" Alicia said happily. She compared the two schedules and finally pronounced, "We've got all our classes together! Go us!"  
  
Angelina scowled. "Why did I have to get all the horrible subjects with no one in them?"  
  
"Don't worry, I've got Arithmancy first too," Oliver said glumly. "Maybe you can help me. I hate that subject."  
  
'I'd help you. if I had Arithmancy.' Katie thought. She watched Oliver and Lina talk while absentmindedly poking the eggs she'd set on her plate in the hopes that no one would notice she wasn't actually eating them. Oliver, of course, looked up, straight into her eyes, and then down to her plate.  
  
"Enjoying your breakfast?"  
  
"Of course."  
  
He looked at her thoughtfully. "Toast?"  
  
"No, thank you."  
  
"Sausage?"  
  
"No, my eggs are fine."  
  
"Are you sure? They've got some lovely pancakes here."  
  
Just the thought of fatty pancakes was enough to cause Katie to briskly turn away. "I'll have an apple, if you please."  
  
He passed her one and she smiled. "Thank you. Excited about the Quidditch season?"  
  
And he was off on a roll again.  
  
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Hmm, I think that's enough for now. Thanks again for all the reviews I've gotten! I feel so special! I know this story's been going one day after the other, but I'll jump forward to October, start of Quidditch season, after another chappie or two. Any objections? Oh, and for your ideas about this story, don't include Katie falling desperately in love with Oliver, everyone already knows that's gonna happen.  
  
Next chapter, Katie meets Lupin, has a run-in with Snape, and lands herself in a detention no one would enjoy.  
  
R/R or I'll castrate your male relatives! Ok, that's a little harsh, maybe I'll just dump molasses on you and laugh while you all try to walk! Muahahahahahaha! 


	5. Classes

Ok, I know, I'm uploading two chappies in the same evening, but no one's going to object, right? This one's a little longer than my usual ones, but it's relatively packed with stuff! Almost like a hot pocket. only it's not hot and you can't eat it! Ok, enough of that.  
  
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Chapter 5 - Classes  
  
After Muggle Studies, Katie had her first Defense Against the Dark Arts class with the new teacher, Professor Lupin. She and Alicia happily joined Angelina at a table in the class and waited expectantly. Moments later the shabbily dressed Lupin arrived in the class. He seemed rather young, but as though he'd been through a lot. Smiling warmly, he began the class.  
  
"Good morning, students, my name is Professor Remus Lupin, and I will be teaching your Defense Against the Dark Arts class for this year. As you are sixth years, I'm afraid I don't know what you all have been taught by your former teachers. So, to start the class off, you will be taking a short test on what you've been learning. Here you are, you may begin."  
  
The test was simple and easy to complete, and after they'd been passed back to Lupin, he explained that they would start with a bit of information on dragons. After dictating information, the professor pulled out a model of a dragon, a Norweigan Ridgeback to be specific, and explained, "When I release this model, it will fly at one of you. All you have to do is answer the question I ask you, and it will fly to another person. Understand?"  
  
"Yes," the class chimed, and Lupin released the model. It blew a tiny streak of fire and headed for Alicia.  
  
"Alicia, which other dragon does the Ridgeback resemble?"  
  
"A Hungarian Horntail!" Alicia said quickly, dodging the fire breath, and the dragon immediately turned to face Katie.  
  
"Does it have tail spikes?"  
  
"No!"  
  
If flew to another student. "What does it normally eat?"  
  
"Large land mammals!" Quickly the dragon turned to face one of the Hufflepuffs.  
  
"What color are the eggs?"  
  
"Uh. Ack!" The Hufflepuff had waited too late, and the dragon had run straight into him. Instead of blowing fire or attacking, the model popped, drenching the boy in water. The entire class erupted in laughter.  
  
"Ok, ok, settle down now. The eggs are black, by the way," Lupin informed. "Now, how about a Hebridean Black?"  
  
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"That was a great class, wasn't it?" Alicia asked as they headed down to the Great Hall for lunch. "Lupin's one of the best DADA teachers we've ever had, I'd say."  
  
"THE best, you mean," Angelina said with a nod. "I bet he fought dragons as a younger wizard, and that's how he knows so much about them."  
  
"You know Percy's older brother, Bill, the one who's got all those scars from fighting dragons and such? We'll have to ask him whether or not he knew a Remus Lupin," Katie suggested.  
  
"Oh, I bet he does. Maybe the two were old dragon-fighting friends," Lina said.  
  
"Maybe Lupin was Bill's mentor!" Alicia exclaimed. By this time they'd reached the Great Hall and had seated themselves with Fred and George. Katie looked around for Oliver and found him chatting with Percy, or rather, falling asleep while Percy talked endlessly.  
  
Katie didn't eat lunch. There was no way she was going to eat lunch. But how was she going to skip lunch for the next school year without her friends noticing? 'Well, ok, they'll notice. But perhaps I'll be able to just dismiss it and they'll get used to it. Anyway, I'll eat breakfast and dinner...'  
  
Casually she scooted a little closer to Fred and George and listened to their conversation.  
  
"...Dunno how to get the money, though, that's the problem," George was saying to Fred.  
  
"We'll just have to sell more, I suppose," Fred said. He looked up at Katie and closed his mouth. "Something you need?"  
  
"Oh, no, I was just-"  
  
"Eavesdropping?" George supplied, cocking his eyebrow.  
  
"Em, sorry then," Katie muttered and turned back to her empty plate. An idea struck her, and she pulled out her DADA book and started on her homework.  
  
"Bloody hell, Katie, why in everything holy are you doing homework for a class that just ended?" Angelina asked, completely flabbergasted.  
  
"Just thought I'd get a head start is all," Katie supplied lamely.  
  
Alicia reached over to feel her forehead. "Are you coming down with something, hun?"  
  
Katie laughed. "Actually, no," she said, but closed and put away the book anyway. "Excited about the Quidditch season?"  
  
"You tried that on Oliver this morning. Think up something new," Lina said, returning to her lunch. "Why aren't you eating anything?"  
  
"I was never really hungry at lunch," Katie said with a shrug. "Guess it just doesn't excite me anymore."  
  
"As I recall, you never did eat much during lunch."  
  
"No, I guess not."  
  
"Well then, what's next on the schedule?" Alicia asked after taking a huge gulp of pumpkin juice.  
  
Katie sighed. "Potions. I'd hoped to wait at least a day before seeing Snape again."  
  
Fred laughed. "George and I haven't got him until tomorrow, thank Merlin."  
  
"Yeah, we still haven't finished cooking up ways to sabotage the class," George said, leaning in conspiratorially.  
  
"Don't get him too worked up," Katie warned. "Wouldn't want his disgustingly greasy hair to turn a shiny gray, would we?"  
  
"No, I don't suppose we would... Eh well, he'll have to deal with it!" Fred said, and he and George headed out of the Great Hall.  
  
"Come on, I suppose we should get to Potions," Alicia said, gathering her bag and standing up. Katie nodded and followed her friend down to the dungeons. They were there in plenty of time to get a good seat in the back and get out their things, but Katie saw with some annoyance that they'd been paired with Slytherin for the class.  
  
"Good day students," Snape said as he entered. "I see we've got Slytherin and. Gryffindor." He looked unpleased. "Well, we'll have to deal with that then. Take out parchment and pen and be ready to write."  
  
Katie was busy measuring out her bat's blood when the greasy-haired teacher approached her table with a frown.  
  
"You're behind, Bell, you should be well past bat's blood by now," he said.  
  
"I noticed Weaver hasn't even gotten to the blood yet, sir," Katie replied, gesturing to a Slytherin boy.  
  
"Weaver's potion is none of your business," Snape said, not noticing Weaver snickering and adding the wrong amount of the wrong ingredient to his potion.  
  
"I don't understand why you don't reprimand the Slytherins for being behind, but you're always on the Gryffindors for it," Katie replied calmly.  
  
"When you're the professor, you can take as many points from whatever house you want," Snape spat, "For now, I am the professor, and I think I'll take ten points from Gryffindor for your mouth."  
  
"Stupid, slimy git," Katie muttered as the professor walked away. "Should be sent to Azkaban with the dementors for all his prejudice."  
  
"I'll see you tonight in detention, Bell," Snape called and no doubt watched with pleasure as Katie scowled.  
  
************  
  
"I can't believe he gave you detention, and on the first day back!" Leesh whispered in their next class, History of Hogwarts.  
  
"I can't believe he heard me, I didn't know I was talking so loudly," Katie admitted. A frown had permanently attached itself to her face since Snape had assigned her detention. She'd had more detentions with that man than with all of the other teachers combined, including Professor McGonagall. Not only that, but Mum and Dave had warned her that if Katie got any more detentions, they'd owl Dumbledore and tell him to take her off the Quidditch team. Hopefully they'd let one slip.  
  
After eating lightly at dinner, Katie excused herself, saying that she wanted to go serve her detention quickly. She knocked on Snape's office and could almost hear him smile as he called, "Come in, Bell."  
  
"Good evening, Professor Snape," she said with a forced smile. He smiled back.  
  
"Good evening. Since our class together, I've been trying to think of some form of detention that you haven't yet had with me, and just moments ago I realized one. Tonight you will spend the next two hours tutoring one of my students on a subject of their choosing. Flint!"  
  
'No. Please, please, let this be a dream. Let me have passed out or something. DON'T give me two hours alone with Flint,' Katie prayed silently. She pinched herself, but couldn't wake as Flint arrived with his malicious smile.  
  
"I think I'll go enjoy my dinner now," Snape said, rising. "I'll be back in two hours."  
  
"Well, isn't this a pleasant surprise," Flint said when Snape had gone. He settled himself in the seat next to Katie before continuing. "Snape came up to me and asked me if I'd like to have you tutor me for the evening, and I couldn't pass up the offer to have you to myself for a few hours, so I agreed. Isn't it wonderful?"  
  
"Not at all," Katie snapped, moving her seat away from the huge Slytherin. "Let's get this done with. What do you want to be tutored in?"  
  
"How about sex?" Flint asked, reaching out to pull Katie closer. She scooted out of his grasp, disgusted. Flint smiled. "I forgot, that would be me tutoring you, wouldn't it? Then I'll have to settle for Divination then... for now."  
  
Katie kept her distance as she rambled on about Divination. She hated the class, and usually slept through it, but she knew enough to always have a topic if Flint tried to come on to her. But, as her talking slowed and she glanced at her watch, she realized there was still fifteen minutes to go before this detention ended.  
  
"And then, eh, Frederick the Devine saw into the future, and... professed that a g-g-great flood would wipe out the world..."  
  
"I'd say that already happened, didn't it?" Marcus interrupted.  
  
"What?"  
  
"A great flood. As I recall, the Bible's got something about that in it."  
  
"How do you know that?"  
  
Flint shrugged, but halfway through the motion reached and pulled Katie's chair close to him. "Now that we've finished with that topic, what's say we get on to another?" he asked breathily. Katie spat in his eyes and jumped back. His hand shot out and grabbed the front of her robes, jerking her forward as he landed a hard punch on her cheek. It was a pain worse than she'd ever felt, but Katie forced back the tears. She wouldn't, couldn't let Flint see her cry.  
  
"I warned Oliver he wouldn't be able to protect you forever," Flint whispered as he stood up. Katie did as well and stepped towards the door.  
  
"S-S-S-Snape'll be back any minute," Katie sputtered quickly. "He'll. he'll expel you if you try anything."  
  
"Rubbish," Flint said lightly, placing his hand on her chest and pushing so that she stumbled back into the wall. He held is hand there, fingers splayed, watching with a smirk as Katie struggled against him.  
  
"A little low, even for you, to just pin a woman against a wall and watch her," Katie spat after a moment. "A real wizard uses his wand at least, but everyone knows you'll never be a real wizard."  
  
She winced, expecting another slap, but only heard Flint laugh deeply. "Next time I'll use my wand then, eh?" He moved even closer and Katie bit her lip hard to force back the tears. This was disgusting. More than disgusting. How could he do this?  
  
Suddenly both of them heard footsteps coming closer. Flint sighed and ground his teeth. "Next time, Bell, there will be no interruptions," he growled, and stomped out of the classroom.  
  
Katie stood against the wall and watched Professor Snape return. He didn't seem to notice her swelled cheek, caused by Flint's hard punch, only muttered that she was dismissed. Without a word Katie left the dungeons and headed back to the Gryffindor common room.  
  
"How was detention?" Alicia asked almost cheerfully as Katie entered.  
  
"Peachy," Katie murmured, looking down at the ground so Leesh wouldn't see her swelling cheek.  
  
"...Something wrong?"  
  
"Not a thing. I'm tired. Goodnight." Despite the other girl's protests, Katie headed straight up to her dormitory and into the bathroom, closing and locking the door. She stared into the mirror at her cheek, which was starting to turn into an ugly, dark blue bruise and was swelling to the size of an orange. She didn't know any spells to make the bruise go away, but she did know one to remove the swelling, so she pointed her wand at her face and muttered the incantation. She could feel her cheek almost deflate, and finally crawled into bed, closed her eyes and fell asleep.  
  
***************  
  
It was dark when Katie woke up the next morning, and she wasn't surprised. She'd probably fallen asleep at eight the night before, which was hours earlier than normal. Quietly, so as not to wake her sleeping friends, she dressed and headed down to the common room.  
  
Hermione Granger sat alone in a corner, working on homework. Katie shook her head at the girl. The second day and already a little third year had to worry about so much homework. Realizing she hadn't finished her own homework, Katie retrieved her bag from where she'd dropped it by the entrance the night before and settled onto a couch, opening a book and beginning her work.  
  
Maybe an hour later, only a little while after sunrise, Katie felt someone sit down next to her and looked up to find Oliver peering over her shoulder.  
  
"Morning, Oliver."  
  
"Morning. What're you working on?"  
  
"Muggle Studies," Katie replied, sticking her tongue out to show her disgust. "We're learning about televisions."  
  
"Katie, what the bloody hell happened to you?"  
  
"What?" Katie looked up to find Oliver staring at the deep bruise on her cheek. 'Stupid,' Katie silently chided. 'You stopped the swelling and ignored the bruise!' "Oh, that's just. Screw it. Oliver, I promise I'll tell you later if you back me up when I tell everyone that we were practicing Quidditch this morning and I was stupid and got hit with the Quaffle really hard. Ok?"  
  
Oliver frowned, his lovely eyes so sad that Katie almost spilled every one of her secrets to him then and there. But before she could he replied. "Ok, I guess. Since we're up so early, you wanna go practice?"  
  
"Sure," Katie said, ready to change the subject. She hurried back up to her dormitory, grabbed her broom, and met Oliver on the Quidditch pitch.  
  
"Ready?" he asked, tossing the Quaffly to her and rising off the ground.  
  
Katie smirked. "You poor keeper, now you're going to get your ass kicked by a girl a year younger than you!"  
  
"Oh, you won't be the one doing the ass-kicking, I can promise you that!" Oliver replied with a laugh, taking his place in front of the three hoops. "Who's the one being scouted by professional Quidditch teams?"  
  
Katie nearly dropped the Quaffle. "You're not serious!"  
  
"Hell yeah!" Oliver said, grinning from ear to ear.  
  
"When are they going to tell you if you got on the team or not?"  
  
"Probably a little after our second game. Ooh, that was a good one! Too bad I caught it," Oliver laughingly sneered, tossing the Quaffle back to Katie.  
  
"That was just a warm-up. Ready for the real ass-kicking?"  
  
Oliver stuck his tongue out and set himself into position. "Not at all, but I'm sure you are."  
  
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Aww, they're flirting! Don't forget to review the chappie before this one! Next chapter I'll probably jump up to October, Quidditch season. I'll probably get to Halloween and the first Hogsmeade trip, but no Sirius just yet.  
  
R/R or I'll order a thousand dead snails and have them delivered to your house! That's disgusting. 


	6. Quidditch

Yet another installment of the epic that is this story! o0true0o: Thanks! RemusGuurl: Hope you like this chappie! Sunnyflower2205: Normal is a lovely word, that's exactly what I was hoping for! Kat6528: Katie is denying it all so I will too! You'll just have to wait and see! Gryffindor Quidditch Gal: I always pictured Marcus as rather cruel, eh well. Thanks, I knew I would mess that up. Correction everyone: Charlie's the one they talk about, the one with the dragons, not Bill. Wiccan-One14: Glad you enjoy it!  
  
I'm telling you right now: every time I read over my earlier chapters, I find stupid mistakes, so sorry about them! I'm a horrible proof reader.  
  
And, since I haven't reminded you of a disclaimer since the first chapter, here we go: I am not J.K. Rowling. I didn't create these characters, but the plot line's mine. Gracias!  
  
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Ch. 6 - Quidditch  
  
After that September passed relatively smoothly, with the exception of mounting piles of homework. Katie spent almost every night filling out some piece of homework in preparation for N.E.W.T.s the following year, even though it was very early in the year. Despite this, Katie was almost too excited for the start of October, which meant only one thing: Quidditch practice.  
  
"Ready for Quidditch, Kate?" Oliver said cheerfully one Thursday.  
  
"Are you joking? Of course!" Katie said just as cheerfully.  
  
"Good, there's a meeting tonight in the locker rooms, so can you tell Alicia and Angelina?"  
  
"Ok, see you tonight!"  
  
That evening when Katie arrived, Oliver was the only one there. He was looking almost completely opposite his earlier cheerfulness: he was nervous, almost sullen, and appeared to actually be sweating.  
  
"You ok, Oliver?" Katie asked softly.  
  
He visibly jumped. "Yeah, yeah, I'm fine. Just nervous. I've got the pep talk to complete before practice starts, and it's just..." He sighed. "Well, you know, this is my last year and all that, and if I can't win the Cup for us this year..."  
  
"Don't worry," Katie said sympathetically, placing a hand on the tall Quidditch player's shoulder. "We'll cream 'em this time, I swear."  
  
Before Oliver could say anything else, Fred and George appeared. The moment was officially lost. After a few more minutes, the entire team had assembled, and Oliver started his speech.  
  
"This is our last chance - my last chance - to win the Quidditch Cup. I'll be leaving at the end of the year. I'll never get another shot at it." He paused for a moment, and Katie actually awful for him. "Gryffindor hasn't won for seven years now. Okay, we've had the worst luck in the world - injuries - then the tournament getting called off last year... But we also know we've got the best - ruddy - team - in - the - school," he said, punching a fist into his other hand. No one could miss that manic glint in his eye.  
  
"We've got three superb chasers." Katie actually blushed as he said this.  
  
"We've got two unbeatable beaters."  
  
"Stop it, Oliver, you're embarrassing us," the Weasleys said together, pretending to blush. Katie hoped no one had noticed her own real blush.  
  
"And we've got a seeker who has never failed to win us a match!" Oliver glared furiously at Harry, who half-nodded. "And me," he concluded.  
  
"You're very good too, Oliver," George said immediately.  
  
"Spanking good keeper," Fred continued, complete with a lovely hand gesture.  
  
"The point is," Oliver continued, ignoring Fred, "The Quidditch Cup should have had our name on it these last two years. Ever since Harry joined the team, I thought the thing was in the bag. But we haven't got it, and this year's the last chance we'll get to finally see our name on the thing..."  
  
Katie wanted to say something encouraging, but she didn't know what would cheer poor Oliver up. "Oliver, this year's our year," Fred supplied as though reading her mind.  
  
"We'll do it, Oliver!" Alicia added.  
  
"Definitely," Harry's soft voice rang out. Katie smiled. Yes, this would be a pleasant Quidditch season.  
  
***********************  
  
It didn't feel so pleasant after the first week. Three days of practice had never really been that horrible, but then again Katie had never been eating less than she did now. She had never felt this weak after practice before. 'I'll have to start eating again,' she decided. 'If I don't, how can we win the Quidditch Cup?'  
  
So the following morning, Katie headed down to the Great Hall with as much determination as she could muster. She WOULD eat a full breakfast today, and it would make her feel energized and ready!  
  
One can guess how that went. Katie sat down, piled eggs, pancakes, and bacon onto her plate, and ate... an apple. Actually, she only ate half the apple. Seeing the grease covering the bacon, the butter slathered over the pancakes, and the salt drenched on the eggs, she couldn't imagine eating anything, not even a whole apple. She sat at the table a total of five minutes before leaping up and nearly sprinting out.  
  
Alicia caught her in the hall. "What the hell's wrong, Katie?" she asked incredulously.  
  
Katie took a few deep breaths to calm herself down. Her throat was burning at the mere thought of the fat she could have ingested. "I... I didn't feel well is all. I think I ate something bad last night or something."  
  
"Hogwarts food? Bad? How is that possible?"  
  
"Oh, no, Hogwarts food isn't bad!" Katie said quickly. "My stomach's just upset."  
  
"Oh..." Leesh looked confused, and Katie felt pretty bad. "Well then, go see Madam Pomfrey. I bet she can give you something to take care of it."  
  
"Yeah, I think I'll do that. Thanks, Leesh!" Katie said, and jogged off in Madam Pomfrey's general direction. About half-way there she doubled back and headed to the common room. Fortunately, everyone she needed to care about was still at breakfast. She settled herself in a chair in the corner and closed her eyes, sighing heavily.  
  
'You can't make yourself eat,' a voice began in her head. 'That's a bad thing, Katie! You were supposed to always be in control with your eating! You've lost control!'  
  
'No, wait,' another voice interjected. 'You haven't lost control at all! Your breakfast is only telling you that your body agrees with the no-fat idea. And think of how awesome you look now! What about Oliver?'  
  
'What about Oliver?' the first voice demanded. 'You can't let him down by being too weak to play Quidditch.'  
  
'You're not. It's the first week, you're going to be tired. Pop some vitamin pills, boost your energy a little. Madam Pomfrey will give you some, no worries there.'  
  
'No worries? No worries!' the voice was nearly hysterical. 'This can hurt you!'  
  
'No, it CAN'T! Think about it, Katie, right now you're the thinnest, prettiest you've ever been, and it can only get better! Anyway, if you really start getting into trouble, they've got clinics for this sort of thing. You don't have to worry a bit!'  
  
Katie was beginning to side with this voice. She didn't want to gain any more pounds. She didn't want to look fat.  
  
'Katie, you can't be serious... Think about it a bit,' the first voice said weakly.  
  
"Shut up," Katie mumbled, and headed out of the common room and out to Madam Pomfrey. There she asked for a few vitamin pills, and Pomfrey happily supplied.  
  
"You're a little thin, aren't you, miss Bell? Would you like to come in for a check-up?" the nurse asked before Katie left.  
  
The girl laughed. "No, that's ok, I've always been on the thin side. Thanks anyway!"  
  
"Ok... have a nice day, miss Bell." Katie smiled privately as she left. So, people were noticing. It was actually starting to work.  
  
***************************  
  
A week or so later, Katie entered the common room to find that Alicia and Angelina were dancing about and high-five-ing everyone they came near. Katie dodged when they got near her, asking, "What's going on?"  
  
"First Hogsmeade trip of the year!" Lina said excitedly. "Finally, I've been waiting so long!"  
  
"Is it on Halloween?" Katie asked, checking the board. "Great! I do need a new broom cleaning kit..."  
  
Alicia's mouth dropped open. "A - a broom cleaning kit? What about Honeydukes? When's the last time you've tasted all their delicious sweets, last year?"  
  
Katie forced a smile. She could remember when she'd go into Honeydukes with her pockets clinking and come out with not a sound. She missed that. "Oh yeah, nearly forgot! Can't wait for Honeydukes!" 'I won't get the stuff with the fat in it, just hard candies. No fat, no worries, right?'  
  
"I'm so excited! This is almost as good as winning a Quidditch match!" Angelina continued jovially. "Did I tell you my Uncle Jerrod lives there? He's always so happy when I visit!"  
  
"Yes, Lina, you've told us at least twice every year since I've known you," Leesh said with a sigh.  
  
"Even before we started going to Hogsmeade," Katie added. Despite her happiness at the thought of going to Hogsmeade at the end of October, a headache was beginning to set in, and the common room was far too loud a place at the moment. Thanks Merlin it wasn't a Quidditch night.  
  
"I've got a little bit of a headache, so I think I'll go up to my dormitory. See you guys later, k?" Katie asked after a few moments.  
  
"Ok, hope you feel better," Alicia said. Katie headed up to her dorm, just missing one of the Weasley's diving for a cat chasing after a scrawny, sickly-looking rat.  
  
**********************  
  
'APPLEBY ARROWS: The northern English team was founded in 1812. Its robes are pale blue...' Katie had read that those two sentences four times so far. She couldn't concentrate on her book. It was later that evening, and though she'd tried, she hadn't been able to get to sleep. So as soon as the other girls had fallen asleep, she'd lit a candle and picked out something to read.  
  
Suddenly Katie looked up sharply and saw an old snowy owl tapping on her window. She sighed. It was Mum's owl.  
  
"Quiet, you," she whispered at Twit, who had begun hooting. He hooted once more and stopped to watch as Katie opened the window, letting a cold draft enter, and brought the snowy owl in. "Hello, Erno. Be quiet!" Alicia stirred as Erno hooted even louder than Twit, but didn't wake up. Katie put Erno in Twit's cage, let Twit go fly around outside while Erno was resting, and opened her mother's letter.  
  
'Hi honey, thought I'd write you to see how Hogwarts has been. Sorry for owling so late! Dave told me about Diagon Alley. Listen, Katie, Dave isn't trying to replace Isaac in any way. He's just trying to be the best step- father possible, ok? Cut him a little slack. So how's Quidditch? Have you started practice yet? Tell me when your first Quidditch game is and I'll see if I can come. Love you, Mum.'  
  
Well, at least Mum was trying to be friendly. Of course, Katie wasn't mad at her mum; the only person she currently loathed was Step-dad Dave. Oh, and Marcus Flint. But she didn't need to worry about him at the moment.  
  
'Hello Mum, Hogwarts is good. We're getting a lot of homework, but I'm doing pretty ok. Quidditch practice started a week ago, and we practice three days a week. Oliver's all worked up about the Quidditch Cup but I've got a feeling we're going to win this year. I don't know when the first game is, but come! Don't bring Dave. Love, Katie.'  
  
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Finally October 31st came. Katie woke up early to the sounds of her friends bouncing around, dressing especially nice for their Hogsmeade trip. Lina kept blabbering on about Uncle Jerrod, while Alicia would not stop talking about all the sweets they would have at Honeydukes, and how everyone had to keep on their guard because Fred and George would have lots of new tricks from Jonko's Joke Shop. Katie couldn't help but feel their happiness as she showered and dressed and headed down to the Entrance Hall.  
  
"Yes, yes, Katie Bell. Go on then," Filch muttered. There was a bit of a wait as he argued almost desperately with the Weasley twins, saying that this year they weren't on the list, but finally they were admitted through and the six friends headed down off to Hogsmeade.  
  
It was even better than Katie remembered it. Witches and wizards of all shapes and sizes were milling around, talking lightly with each other and the mass of Hogwarts students arriving. It was an especially cold day, so Oliver suggested heading to Three Broomsticks first for a round of butterbeers.  
  
"Getting drunk already, eh?" an old witch who was always at the Three Broomsticks laughed. Fred and George happily clanked mugs with the witch and she turned back to her food.  
  
After the Three Broomsticks, the six split into two groups. Angelina and Alicia wanted to see Honeydukes, but Katie was keen on Zonko's. So she headed there with Fred and George, and Oliver followed the other girls to the sweet shot.  
  
Zonko's was packed with Hogwarts students, and the owner couldn't look more pleased at seeing the Weasley twins. They spent most of their money of tricks and jokes, and Katie, having nothing better to do, used up quite a few galleons there as well.  
  
"Planning on joining the cult, Kate?" Fred asked as they walked out.  
  
"We could always use a hand with Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes," George continued. Katie had known about their plans ever since they'd first thought them up, and they were always asking her to help.  
  
"That's alright, I think I'll stick with a few random tricks here and there, not enough to label me as a jokester," she replied casually.  
  
After a quick visit to Honeydukes and a trip to the Shrieking Shack, it was time to meet up with Oliver and the girls back at the Three Broomsticks. But when they got there, Angelina was talking to Hufflepuff boy, and Leesh and Oliver were nowhere to be found.  
  
"You know what this means..." Fred said jokingly. Katie gave him a death glare, and he looked thoroughly surprised.  
  
"Cripes, Katie, if looks could kill! I know George is desperately in love with Angelina, but you and Oliver? Hmm, have to think about that one..." Fred mumbled.  
  
"Who said my name?" Lina asked, walking up. Katie could tell there was something a little off about her, but she didn't know what.  
  
"No one, you probably just heard something," George said almost too quickly. "Where's Oliver?"  
  
"And Alicia?" Katie added.  
  
"When I left, Alicia was going to the bathroom, I think, but I dunno where Ollie is," Angelina said almost happily.  
  
"Um, Angel, how long have you been here?" George asked. Katie ignored the pet-name to hear Lina's response.  
  
"Since forever!" Lina said with a loud laugh.  
  
"You're drunk," Katie pronounced, sighing.  
  
"Nu-uh!"  
  
"Go check on Alicia in the bathroom, ok?" Fred asked Katie as George led Angelina to a seat.  
  
"Ok." Katie headed to the back, where the bathrooms were, and opened the ladies door. "Alic-" she stopped mid-word, staring, as the door swung closed behind her.  
  
"K-K-K-Katie!" Oliver sputtered, stepping away from Alicia and wiping her lipstick off his face. "I - Eh - You don't-"  
  
"Really, I don't want a half-assed explanation," Katie spat furiously, anger rising quickly in her stomach."  
  
Alicia was staring back and forth from Oliver to Katie, as though just realizing what she'd been doing. She took a step towards her friend and opened her mouth to speak, but Katie cut her off.  
  
"I'd rather not hear it. See you lovebirds at Hogwarts," she growled, retreating from the bathroom and walking numbly back to where Fred, George, and Angelina were sitting.  
  
Fred stood up. "Katie?"  
  
"I'm leaving," Katie said in a voice void of all expression. "Please take my bags back to the castle with you. Thank you." Without another word she sprinted out of the Three Broomsticks and all the way back to Hogwarts.  
  
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Uh oh! Why are Alicia and Oliver snogging? And how will Katie cope? Ah, the evilness. Next chapter, the Halloween feast and what ensues. Have a lovely few days! 


	7. Sirius Black and the Halloween Feast

Dear readers, I apologize in advance, both for how short this chapter is and what's in it. I know you didn't want this to happen, but it had to, I'm afraid. I've got nothing to do tonight so I'm starting right into the next chapter, which I assure you will be longer than this one. I'm currently missing the third book, so I have to figure out when the first Quidditch game is before I can continue, unfortunately. Ok, let's move on.  
  
Woody'sWickedWitch: Great try, but nah, lol. Professional scatterbrain: I know, and soon you will too... muahahahahaha... Sunnyflower2005: I'm sorry, but this chapter pretty much lets it all out, at least for Katie. I suppose I could say that, but it's hard to judge. Let's see how you like it!  
  
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Ch. 7 - Sirius Black and the Halloween Feast  
  
The Halloween feast that year was one of the worst Katie had ever experienced. Fred and George were with Dean Thomas planning various tricks, Oliver was smart enough to go sit with Percy on the opposite end of the Gryffindor table, and Alicia and Angelina had sat with some of the younger students, who didn't realize that the two of them were still rather drunk. This left Katie completely and totally alone.  
  
Oliver snogging her best friend would not leave Katie's mind. Mindlessly she ate, everything from candy-coated fruits to sweet pies to anything else she could find. She didn't notice the noise around her, or the entertainment provided by the ghosts. She did notice that everyone was filing out of the Hall, though, and went with the crowd of Gryffindors up to the portrait of the Fat Lady, where everyone suddenly stopped. Finally her trance was broken when silence fell over the students in front of house entrance and Professor Dumbledore made his way through the clogged hallway.  
  
The portrait of the Fat Lady had been slashed, and tatters were strewn about the floor underneath it. The Fat Lady herself was gone.  
  
"We need to find her," Dumbledore told the teachers who had arrived: Professor McGonagall, Professor Snape, and Professor Lupin. "Professor McGonagall, please go to Mr. Filch at once and tell him to search every painting in the castle for the Fat Lady."  
  
"You'll be lucky!" a cackling voice called, and Katie immediately recognized it as coming from Peeves.  
  
"What do you mean, Peeves?" Dumbledore asked very calmly, and Peeves seemed to lose a bit of his energy.  
  
"Ashamed, Your Headship, sir. Doesn't want to be seen. She's a horrible mess. Saw her running through the landscape up on the fourth floor, sir, dodging between trees. Crying something dreadful... Poor thing."  
  
"Did she say who did it?"  
  
"Oh yes, Professorhead. He got very angry when she wouldn't let him in, you see." The poltergeist flipped over and looked at Dumbledore between his legs. "Nasty temper he's got, that Sirius Black."  
  
A gasp went through the crowd, and Katie automatically looked around as though she would see Sirius hiding behind one of the statues. Dumbledore sent the mass of Gryffindors back to the Great Hall, and soon the other houses had joined them as well, looking confused.  
  
"The teachers and I need to conduct a thorough search of the castle," Professor Dumbledore said while McGonagall and Flitwick briskly closed the doors. "I'm afraid that, for your own safety, you will have to spend the night here. I want the prefects to stand guard over the entrances to the hall and I am leaving the Head Boy and Girl in charge. Any disturbance should be reported to me immediately," he told Percy, who puffed up like a balloon. "Send word with one of the ghosts. ...Oh yes, you'll be needing... sleeping bags!"  
  
With a casual wave of the wand, he had made the four huge tables stand themselves up against a wall, and immediately hundreds of squashy purple sleeping bags appeared.  
  
"Sleep well," the headmaster finished, and left, closing the door behind him.  
  
"What happened?" a Ravenclaw asked, coming up to Katie.  
  
"Sirius Black tried to get in to our common room, but the Fat Lady wouldn't let him, so he slashed her portrait to pieces," Katie told her.  
  
"Oh, wow..." She immediately turned to tell her friends.  
  
"Everyone into their sleeping bags!" Percy was shouting. "Come on, now, no more talking! Lights out in ten minutes!"  
  
Katie picked up a sleeping bag and immediately headed to a corner far away from her friends. She was just settling down when Oliver suddenly appeared next to her.  
  
"Go away," she muttered moodily, but Oliver put a hand over her mouth.  
  
"Quiet! Marcus Flint is trying to find you. He said something about detention..." Oliver studied her for a moment before continuing, "I don't know what this is about, but I do know that whatever would happen if Flint were to find you isn't going to happen while I'm here. Bloody hell, here he comes. Hide!"  
  
Katie snuggled deep into her sleeping bag and listened as heavy footsteps approached.  
  
"Who you hiding under there, eh, Wood?" Flint asked.  
  
"No one of your concern," Oliver replied coolly.  
  
"Well, we'll see about that."  
  
There was a scuffle, and Wood's gruff voice: "I'll use my wand if I have to! I know more hexes is my little finger than you would ever know."  
  
"Then who's hiding there?"  
  
"My girlfriend, ok? I just can't let my friends see her." A part of Katie's mind that wasn't trembling in fear complimented Wood on his acting.  
  
Flint laughed gruffly, and his steps receded. Katie pulled herself out of the sleeping bag and smiled at Oliver. "Thanks."  
  
"No problem. May I ask... why was he looking for you?"  
  
She sighed. 'I knew it would come to this. Why the hell do I have to tell him? Well, I said I would earlier, so I guess I have to.' "Eh, he's sort of been..." Katie stopped. 'Wait. I don't have to tell him. He snogged my best friend!'  
  
"Been? Been what?" Oliver pressed.  
  
Katie closed her mouth and stared at him. Finally she said, "Why should I tell you? Obviously you've been keeping something from me."  
  
Oliver looked confused. "What? I haven't been keeping anything from you..."  
  
Katie almost laughed but didn't and replied, "No, nothing except for your love for my best friend!"  
  
"What? Oh, that." The Quidditch keeper frowned, staring at the ground. "That's what you're worried about?"  
  
Suddenly the lights went out. Katie jumped ever so slightly, but with the help of the ghosts floating around, quickly adjusted to the dimness. She and Oliver lowered their voices, noting that Percy was across the room.  
  
"Yes, that's what I'm worried about. It's not often I stroll into a ladies' room to find me friend and..." What to call Oliver? "...other friend sucking face."  
  
Oliver sighed and rested his head against the wall he was leaning against. He stared at his hands as he replied. "We - Alicia and I - were just about as drunk as Angelina. She went to the bathroom, and I thought I should probably go too, only Fred and George decided to send me to girls' room instead of the boys', and there was Alicia, sitting there."  
  
"And then, what, you two just ran at each other?"  
  
"No, not at all. I... I think I sat down next to her, and before I knew it we were, you know. I don't know what I was thinking, Katie. I'm sorry." Even in the dark, Katie could tell Oliver knew exactly what he was thinking, but he wasn't going to tell. 'Does he love Alicia? He must, that's the only possible reason. And I thought... Never mind what I thought. I'm stupid.'  
  
"So, are we ok then?"  
  
There was no point in saying no. If Oliver and Alicia were going to fall in love, that was fine with Katie. Suddenly a thought struck her: if Angelina and George paired up, and Oliver and Leesh paired up, that left her and Fred. It wasn't a horrible thought... she supposed...  
  
"Yeah, we're fine."  
  
"Are you going to tell me about Flint?"  
  
Katie paused for a moment. "No. Not tonight, at least."  
  
"Ok, I'll respect that. But you owe me. Promise?"  
  
"Promise. 'Night Oliver."  
  
"'Night, Katie."  
  
**********************  
  
Katie felt absolutely horrid the next morning. Her chat with Oliver had done nothing to improve her mood, and though she once again sat with her friends, Alicia was still avoiding her gaze. On top of that, Black hadn't been caught, so the entire school had slept on the hard ground in purple sleeping bags for absolutely nothing. So during breakfast, all Katie could think about was food. Once again she did something most people like to call binging.  
  
Once it was down, it felt horrible. Grease, butter, and fat sat in her stomach and she couldn't even think about concentrating during Muggle Studies. Finally, only a few moments into class, Katie raised her hand.  
  
"Yes, miss Bell?"  
  
"I'm feeling sick, could I please be excused?"  
  
"Um, alright, miss Bell. Anything I can do?"  
  
"No, but thank you." Katie rose and left the class, feeling many eyes on her. She realized Alicia was watching her especially closely, but when Katie looked at her, she quickly looked away.  
  
The walk to the bathroom was mechanical. Filch's cat Mrs. Norris eyed her suspiciously, but only meowed loudly. After checking to make sure no one else was in the bathroom, Katie locked herself in a stall and paused for a moment. The thought of everything in her stomach was so sickening that it needed very little help to come back up.  
  
Afterwards, Katie's eyes, nose, and mouth were stinging, and she felt horrid, but as she washed her mouth out with water and walked slowly back to class, she reassured herself that that would be the only time she would do that. 'It's damages your mouth and throat, it's bad for you. No more of that.'  
  
"Feeling better, miss Bell?"  
  
"Much," Katie replied. Out of habit she took the seat next to Alicia, who looked vaguely surprised. As the class restarted, Alicia mouthed, "What were you doing?"  
  
"Nothing," Katie mouthed back.  
  
"Do you forgive me?"  
  
Katie nodded. Alicia grinned, and they continued with class.  
  
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Well, that settled everything! Not. The next chapter will be longer, and if I can get the first Quidditch match in, things will start clearing up. I don't know how long this story's going to be, but it probably won't be more than maybe ten or fifteen chapters. Does anyone have an ideas as to how to continue with this story? Please, I want to know your ideas!  
  
Don't forget to tell friends and stuff about this. I want reviews! R/R or I'll make the directors cancel the next Harry Potter movie! 


	8. Gryffindor vs Slytherin or Not

Some things have changed in this chapter, I should let you know. I know the whole Gryffindor team except Oliver is with Harry in the hospital after his fall, but in this one we're leaving Katie out, ok? I'm sure none of you mind... you probably wouldn't have even noticed if I hadn't mentioned it. But some of you are pretty perceptive, so just giving you a heads up. Oh and warning: heavy stuff in this one, a lot of detail. If you mind, flame me. I guess.  
  
Professional scatterbrain: Good questions. Some of her friends notice, but not others. You would think people would notice, but everyone has friends that just don't eat much, and to her friends Katie's always been like that. About Quidditch... well, a lot is going to happen in this chapter and the next... and the next. I think. All of this will be answered soon.  
  
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Ch. 8 - Gryffindor vs. Slytherin... or Not  
  
Sir Cadogan, the new Gryffindor entrance portrait, was quite possibly the most annoying person ever painted. Every time Katie and her friends tried to enter, they found out the password had been changed, and were challenged to a duel to get in. George tried to hex the portrait once, but unfortunately it didn't work.  
  
Poor Harry Potter was being followed everywhere he went by Percy. Katie felt horrible for him; to be followed by such a pompous know-it-all was horrible, but to be followed because a madman was after you was worse.  
  
These thoughts were driven from Katie's mind during Quidditch practice, which was getting harder and harder as the September weather got worse and worse. Katie prayed that their first game - that Saturday, versus Slytherin - would be dry and maybe even sunny, but she didn't really expect her wish to be granted.  
  
The horrible weather didn't slow Oliver. After every practice he reminded Katie that she had to work harder, but even taking all those vitamin pills she was barely able to stand after practices. When Madam Hooch started overseeing practice, Katie was afraid she would notice the Gryffindor chaser was constantly tired, but Hooch only watched Harry to make sure the boy wasn't zapped out of the sky.  
  
It was the last practice before the Gryffindor-Slytherin match. Wood had gone somewhere, and the rest of the team was packing up and preparing to leave. Finally Oliver came back, looking angrier than Katie had ever seen him.  
  
"We're not playing Slytherin!" he exclaimed, stopping the entire locker room dead in its tracks. "Flint's just been to see me. We're playing Hufflepuff instead."  
  
"Why?" the rest of the team asked in unison.  
  
"Flint's excuse is that their Seeker's arm is still injured." Katie knew about the incident with Malfoy and Buckbeak, but it wasn't possible that he was still hurt. "...it's obvious why they're doing it. Don't want to play in this weather. Think it'll damage their chances...."  
  
"There's NOTHING WRONG with Malfoy's arm!" Harry shouted furiously over a rumble of thunder. "He's faking it!"  
  
"I know, but we can't prove it," Oliver said bitterly. "And we've been practicing all those moves assuming we're playing Slytherin, and instead it's Hufflepuff, and their style's quite different. They've got a new Captain and Seeker, Cedric Diggory-"  
  
Despite herself, Katie giggled at the name, and found Alicia and Angelina doing the same.  
  
"What?" Oliver asked.  
  
"He's that tall, good-looking one, isn't he?" Angelina asked. George looked appalled.  
  
"Strong and silent," Katie added. Ok, he was no Oliver, not even a Fred, but for a Hufflepuff, he was nice.  
  
"He's only silent because he's too thick to string two words together," Fred snapped. "I don't know why you're worried, Oliver, Hufflepuff is a pushover. Last time we played them, Harry caught the Snitch in about five minutes, remember?"  
  
"We were playing in completely different conditions!" Oliver shouted. His eyes were bulging, and Katie feared he would have a massive heart attack over this game. "Diggory's put a very strong side together! He's an excellent Seeker! I was afraid you'd take it like this! We mustn't relax! We must keep our focus! Slytherin is trying to wrong-foot us! We MUST win!"  
  
"Oliver, calm down!" Fred was looking slightly alarmed. "We're taking Hufflepuff very seriously. Seriously."  
  
********************  
  
The day of the match dawned cold, wet, and dark. Katie glared at the view outside her window. Just the thought of playing in those conditions made her want to go hide under her covers.  
  
Things between her and Alicia had settled down. Alicia had explained her version of the ordeal at the Three Broomsticks, and it was close enough to Oliver's that Katie decided it was ok. She knew the two of them liked each other, but there was nothing she could do about it, so she shoved it from her mind and concentrated on the friendship they'd had since they'd first gone to Hogwarts.  
  
"Ready for the game?" Leesh asked, brushing out her long hair.  
  
"Not really, but I'll play anyway," Katie sighed. They headed down to the Great Hall, where Oliver and Harry were already sitting. While Harry was munching away, Oliver wasn't eating a thing.  
  
"It's going to be a tough one," Oliver said nervously.  
  
"Stop worrying, Oliver," Alicia said in her most soothing voice, "we don't mind a bit of rain."  
  
'I'd be happy if it were only a bit of rain,' Katie thought as the Gryffindor team headed out to the Quidditch pitch. She was leaning against the wind, the crowd was almost silence compared to the thunder booming, and rain was already soaking the heavy Quidditch uniforms.  
  
"Mount your brooms," Madam Hooch shouted. Katie jumped onto her broom and rose into the air, and the game commenced. It was probably the hardest she'd ever played.  
  
She, Alicia, and Angelina were passing clumsily to each other, but the Hufflepuffs were having just as much difficulty, so it could have been worse. They scored enough times to be in the lead at least, Katie decided. But by the time Oliver called a timeout, she felt like an ice cube, one that needed to sit down and take a long, dry break.  
  
Oliver and Harry were shouting something at each other. Harry was gesturing to his glasses. Suddenly, his friend, Hermione Granger, ran up and grabbed his glasses. She tapped them with her wand, gave them back, shouted something, and ran off. Katie immediately noticed they repelled the rain. 'Thank god for that girl!'  
  
Soon they were up in the air again. Katie had no idea what was going on; she had to force herself just to fly. Alicia and Angelina had obviously realized this; they were taking most of the plays themselves. Katie tried to participate, but it was difficult. She was smacked hard by a passing Bludger, right in the shoulder, and as she flew she could feel it swelling.  
  
Suddenly Katie sensed an eerie silence coming over the crowd. She felt every ounce of happiness suck from her body, and in a flash of lightning saw why: at least a hundred dementors were on the Quidditch pitch. 'Oh, no... Please, no, anything but dementors...'  
  
Katie had had enough traumatizing experiences with dementors. She was way too lightheaded to do anything. Slowing down, she watched as Harry fell from his broom, straight to the ground. She couldn't concentrate. She flew towards him, as quickly as possible, with her other teammates. 'Harry, is Harry ok? Oh Merlin, he fell far... Hope he's ok...'  
  
As soon as she hit the ground, probably ten or fifteen feet away from Harry and the others, she sank to her knees. "Can someone help me...?" she whispered, knowing no one would be there. Madam Hooch and her friends were surrounding Harry, and Professor Dumbledore was shooting what a disconnected part of Katie's mind knew was a Patronus. The dementors left immediately, but they didn't take that horrible they brought with them.  
  
Dumbledore had magicked Harry onto a stretcher, and the other Gryffindors, as well as Cedric Diggory and a few Hufflepuff players, were heading up to the castle with him. Had he died? Katie couldn't keep her mind on anything. She was falling in and out of consciousness. She couldn't feel the cold or wet anymore; it was just nothingness. There was nothing left to do; she fainted.  
  
*******************  
  
"K-Katie?"  
  
Rain was still pouring, thunder was still rolling, but there were no dementors and no people. Oliver was standing over Katie, but she couldn't see his face. Everything was blurry and moving around.  
  
"Wha happened to Harry?" Katie asked in a slurred voice.  
  
"Harry fell. He's with Madam Hooch now. What happened to you?" Oliver carefully picked her up and started walking. His tall form blocked the rain as he hunched.  
  
"Don't take me to Hooch!" Katie said immediately, suddenly trying to wriggle away. Her mind was still in a fog, but she knew she couldn't go to the hospital. No, they would find out, everyone would know everything about her!  
  
"Stop, stop, I'm going to drop you!" Oliver warned, holding her tighter. "I'm not taking you to Madam Hooch, ok? Just to the locker rooms."  
  
Suddenly it was warmer, drier, and the wind had stopped blowing. Katie took a deep breath, and sure enough, smelled the locker rooms. Good, so Oliver wasn't going to give her up.  
  
"I'm going to set you down for a second, ok?" Oliver whispered.  
  
Katie nodded, eyes half closed, and tried to watch as Oliver pulled out a key and opened what Katie had always thought was a storeroom, but what was really the Captain's personal office. Wood picked her back up and set her down on a soft couch. He briskly lit a few lamps and, using his wand, brewed some sort of drink. He handed a mug to Katie and told her to drink it all quickly.  
  
"Whoa! What is this stuff?" she asked when she'd drunk the last drop. Immediately her mind was clearer, she was wide awake, and she could once again feel how cold, wet, and weak she had become.  
  
Oliver half-smiled. "Family recipe. Kind of like a pepper-up potion."  
  
"Yeah. Thanks, by the way. Why aren't you with Harry?"  
  
"I just... couldn't face him at the moment," Oliver said truthfully. "Diggory grabbed the Snitch right after Harry fell. I know he tried to call it off, but it didn't happen."  
  
"We - lost?"  
  
Oliver nodded. He looked so depressed that Katie completely forgot about her strange situation. For about half a second.  
  
"What happened? I'm sorry, I was so wrapped up with Harry, I didn't see you come down."  
  
"The dementors," Katie explained quickly. "They do stuff to me. I managed to make it to the ground, but I just didn't have any strength to get anywhere."  
  
Oliver was looking hard at her. He didn't answer for a moment, but finally jumped up and said, "You want some dry clothes?"  
  
"Yeah, sure."  
  
He went over to a closet and pulled out one of his dry uniforms. "Here, just change into that for now." Briskly he headed to a corner and faced it, eyes closed and hands over his eyes.  
  
Katie smiled at his chivalry and briskly changed out of her sopping wet clothes. The couch she was sitting on was still damp, but her clothes were now dry, and it made her much warmer.  
  
"Thanks, I'm done." Oliver nodded and turned back to her, smiling suddenly.  
  
"Your hair looks awful!"  
  
"Thank you for noticing," Katie said with a smirk. She'd hoped to keep on this sort of conversation, but that stupid Keeper wouldn't hear of it. He sat down in a chair across from her and, face grave, stared into her eyes.  
  
"Katie, what's wrong? What happened to you?"  
  
"I told you, Oliver, the dementors-"  
  
"No, I don't mean tonight and the dementors!" Oliver snapped. He took a deep breath before continuing. "You're shrinking, Katie, and not in a good way."  
  
"You want me to be fat then?" Katie demanded furiously.  
  
Oliver was silent for a moment. "So it's true."  
  
'Shit,' Katie thought, 'What a stupid thing to say.' "No, of course not."  
  
"Then why don't you eat? And why are you so weak all of a sudden? What happened to the healthy, happy Kate I used to know?"  
  
"Things change, Oliver! Did you expect me to be the same, stupid Katie of second year? Get a grip! And why is it any of your business anyway? Keep yourself to your Quidditch and leave me alone!" Oliver opened his mouth to speak, but Katie jumped up and stormed out, ignoring him.  
  
'How dare he try to get involved with my life!' she thought as she headed back into the fury of weather. 'Why does he of all people have to notice me? He's in love with Alicia, why can't he just stick with her!'  
  
Katie didn't see anyone in the halls, not even Filch or Mrs. Norris, as she headed to Gryffindor tower. Inside, Alicia and Angelina stopped her immediately.  
  
"Kate, where have you been?" Lina asked breathlessly. "I haven't seen you since the match!"  
  
"Yeah, you wouldn't! Don't notice a thing if Potter's injured, do you? The entire team hurries to his aid, and what am I, a useless figure in the background? Leave me alone!" Katie nearly shouted, sprinting up the stairs and into her dormitory. She knew it was useless, but she locked the door.  
  
'I shouldn't be blaming everyone,' she thought through sobs. 'It's not their fault. I didn't have to go on about Harry. He's that one that fell, anyway.'  
  
The lock clicked and someone came in. 'Dammit, not a second of time before they barge in.' Her drapes were shut, so she couldn't see who it was, but she immediately closed her mouth and tried to stop the tears from flowing down her cheeks.  
  
"Katie? Can we talk? ...Please?"  
  
"Shit, Oliver," Katie said, sniffing and wiping her eyes. "Why won't you leave me alone?"  
  
Oliver pulled open a drape and crawled onto the bed, holding a candle. He set it down between the two, closed the drape, and looked at Katie. "Because I care about you, Kate. I can't just watch as you kill yourself."  
  
Tears were flowing again. "Why do you have to care so much? No one cares about me, don't you even get that?"  
  
"If no one cares about you, why did Alicia and Angelina beg me to come find out what was wrong? And Fred and George, why were they scrambling for something, anything, to cheer you up?"  
  
"Because I screamed at them, that's why. They - you - don't know anything about what I go through."  
  
Oliver reached up and gently wiped a tear from Katie's cheek. His hand was soft and his own eyes were shining. "I want to help you. But there's nothing I can do if you won't open up to me."  
  
This was way too hard. Tell Oliver secrets that she hadn't been able to tell anyone for years? Katie knew she wanted to, but she couldn't find her voice. Her mind was filled with dozens of excuses, all blocking the truth, which was cowering in a corner.  
  
Oliver had crawled over and was sitting Katie in his lap, his strong, warm arms wrapped around her, protecting her. It felt good. Before she could help it, she'd fallen asleep.  
  
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Tough stuff, eh? A little depressing, too, but I promise things will get better. Next chapter, Katie reveals all to Oliver, and they've got to figure out what to do about it. I know you probably hate the story by now, but review anyway! Please! 


	9. To Tell All

Welcome, once again, to another chapter! For the past week I've been at band camp (go band cult!), which is why I haven't updated. This one should keep you occupied for at least the next three minutes, though! Warning, a few bits of naughty language this in this one. Now, on to the reviews!  
  
Ash: You'll be getting that reaction in this chapter, in case you didn't know. :) RemusGuurl: Much thanks! Gryffindor Quidditch Gal: A lot of demons are coming around this chapter, but Katie's staying as quiet as she can and telling as few people as possible, as you will soon learn. Sorry dear, Oliver's mine. :P Sunnyflower2005: You've been so helpful and happy though this entire thing. Thank you soooooo much! Sadly, this chapter doesn't answer everything. Gotta stretch it! Kat6528: Oh yeah, secrets are the best. They make wonderful stories. ZeldaDragon: That was an awesome review! Thank you so much, your reviews make me so happy. Eowyn-Faith: I'm glad you like it. Yeah, I tend to write depressing stuff. Maybe if I start another story it'll be a little happier. Professional scatterbrain: No dementor- explaining in this chapter, sorry. I can't decide whether or not to let Oliver in on the secret about dementors, but I know I'll let you guys know. Should Oliver understand as well, or should we keep him in the dark? Freelancewriter: Like I said, band camp. At least it's not five weeks, lol.  
  
One... two... three... nine reviews! Go me! Please, please, please tell your ff.net friends to review this thing!! I'd like to break a hundred eventually!  
  
Oh, and there's a spell I made up in here. It means "seal shut," but the word meaning "seal" is wrong. Like, wrong definition or something.  
  
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Ch. 9 - To Tell All  
  
Katie woke up the next morning to soft, warm breath on her ear, and realized she was still wrapped in Oliver's arms. The drapes were, thankfully, closed, but she could hear her dorm-mates soft snores, and knew they'd all had a peek before heading to bed.  
  
'Now, how to get out of his arms without waking him up?' she thought. Carefully, she pried his hands apart, and they slipped down, freeing her. She crawled off him, replacing the empty space with a pillow, and slipped out of the dormitory and down to the common room. Amazingly, Fred sat there, completely alone, playing chess with himself.  
  
"Morning, Bell," he muttered. "Care for a game?"  
  
Katie nodded and sat down, replacing all the pieces and starting the new game. "Have you seen Harry lately?"  
  
"He's still with Madam Pomfrey. I think he has to stay there for the rest of the weekend," Fred supplied. After a bit of play he asked, "Feeling better?"  
  
"Yeah," Katie said. "Sorry about last night. I was a little... messed up."  
  
"That game was psychotic." Fred watched as Katie picked up a knight, which immediately burst into dust and confetti. Fred broke into laughter at Katie's face, which was covered in soot.  
  
"Fred Weasley!" she sputtered, "I'm gonna kill you!!"  
  
But before she could lay a hand on him, Oliver's sleepy voice came from the girls' dormitory stairs. "Good morning, everyone."  
  
"It's just the two of us, Wood," Fred said, replacing Katie's blown-up chess piece and continuing the game.  
  
"Good morning to you two, then. Who's winning?"  
  
Katie shrugged. "We just started. Cripes, Fred, your stupid pawn killed my rook!"  
  
Fred chuckled a little. Oliver pulled up a chair and sat down to watch, and by the time Fred finally defeated Katie (he WAS a lot better...), many other Gryffindors had arrived downstairs. A few checked to make sure Harry wasn't dead, and when reassured, went their separate ways.  
  
"Care for a bit of breakfast?" Fred asked Katie. "After that I think we'll be checking up on Harry."  
  
"That's ok, I'm not really that hungry. Come and get me when we go see Harry, though."  
  
Fred nodded and headed off with his brother George, and Katie picked up a book lying on the floor - Quidditch Through the Ages - and sat down on the couch to read it. She wasn't surprised when someone else sat next to her. Oliver, of course.  
  
"Good morning," he said in his deep Scottish brogue.  
  
"Good morning," she replied as casually as possible.  
  
"What are you reading?"  
  
She held up the book so that he could see the front cover.  
  
"You've read that at least five times since the beginning of this year!"  
  
Katie laughed; he was right. "Well, it's a good book. We got a lot of plays out of this book as I recall."  
  
"That we did."  
  
There was silence for a while, and Katie returned to her book. Finally Oliver muttered, "So..."  
  
"So..."  
  
"I hate to push you, but..."  
  
'Wouldn't it be nice if people could control other people's minds?' Katie thought offhandedly. 'Then you could completely erase memories and no one would know! But then there would be some problems...'  
  
"...Katie?"  
  
"Oh, sorry, just spacing out," Katie said with half a laugh.  
  
"Right, em, as I was saying, we really need to talk. I know this is hard, for the both of us, but the only way I can help you is if you talk to me," Oliver said softly, his soft eyes pleading for Katie to explain everything. She sighed.  
  
"I... I guess I have to, don't I?" Oliver didn't reply, and Katie continued after a moment. "Is it ok if we, I dunno, go outside? I'd rather not have people listen."  
  
Oliver nodded and, after retrieving shoes and cloaks, the two of them headed out of the common room, down flights and flights of stairs, past the Great Hall, and outside. The storm of the evening before had died and was long gone; the sun was rising, drying the moisture on the grass and trees, and while it was still cold, the wind wasn't blowing nearly as fiercely. Katie wrapped her cloak closely around her and sat down under a huge tree where the grass was nearly dry. Oliver sat down next to her and sighed deeply.  
  
"Wish we'd had the match tonight, eh?"  
  
Katie nodded.  
  
"So tell me what's going on, Kate."  
  
Kate. Kate. Katie's dad had started calling her Kate, and when the Quidditch team had visited one summer Oliver picked it up. Sometimes the others called her Kate, but usually it was just Oliver and Dad.  
  
Katie remained silent for at least ten minutes, trying as hard as she could to collect her thoughts. "Wha-" The first syllable was croaked out, so Katie cleared her throat and started again. "What do you want to know about?"  
  
"What's going on with Marcus Flint?"  
  
The chaser sitting next to the keeper nearly smiled. This, at least, was an easy one. "Flint's just been... I don't know, hitting on me for the last few years." Offhandedly Katie realized it had been since she'd stopped eating. This was going to be difficult. "Starting this year he's just been taking it a little too far."  
  
"What do you mean, 'too far'?" Oliver asked quickly. It was difficult not to notice that his eye was bulging.  
  
"Come on, Ol, you know what I mean," Katie whispered.  
  
"He hasn't...?"  
  
"No, but he's tried."  
  
Oliver's hands were in fists and his teeth were being ground to a fine dust. "If I ever see him-"  
  
"Please don't do anything," Katie pleaded quickly. "I told you this before, you can't get kicked out in your last year! Especially with Quidditch teams looking to sign you up!"  
  
The boy sighed. Quidditch had once again subdued him. "I'm not promising anything," he warned after a moment. Katie nodded.  
  
"Ok, tell me now, what's going on with your parents?" Oliver briskly changed the subject. "Every single year before this, you're dad's come with you and you're mum to see you off. But this year he wasn't here. He didn't... die, did he?"  
  
"No, not yet, thankfully," Katie said. Before she could stop herself she rushed out, "Mum and Dad separated in February and didn't tell me. When I got back I found out Dad was moving and Mum had replaced him by a muggle named Dave."  
  
"Oh, Kate, I'm so sorry," Oliver said, and he really sounded sorry. "If there's anything I can do-"  
  
"No, I don't think so. I'm getting over it, I guess," Katie said almost truthfully. "I'm going to go see Dad over Christmas vacation. We'll work this out.  
  
"Since we're telling all of this stuff, I need you to tell me something," she said quickly, before he could get the next question out.  
  
"What is it?" Oliver, who was still getting over the shock of the last revelation, asked almost dumbly.  
  
"When you talked to me about... about the thing with Alicia, you sounded like you were hiding something," Katie began carefully.  
  
"What do you mean?" Oliver replied just as carefully.  
  
"As I recall, you said you didn't know what you were thinking. But... it sounded an awful lot like you did."  
  
Oliver was very, very silent, and a blush was slowly creeping up his neck. Finally Katie sighed.  
  
"Just tell me what's going on between you and Leesh. Do you like her, and does she like you? Are you two going to go out?"  
  
Oliver suddenly barked a laugh. "No, that's not it at all!" His blush was slowly ebbing away. "I don't think of Alicia as any more than a friend and an excellent chaser."  
  
"Then what were you thinking when you kissed her?"  
  
Once again he was horribly hushed, and his blush had returned to his cheeks full throttle. "I... I can't tell you. Not yet, at least."  
  
"Why?"  
  
"I just can't," he snapped.  
  
"Well... ok then. My questions are done."  
  
Oliver nodded and took a deep breath. There were a lot of deep breaths and sighs in this conversation, Katie noted. "Why don't you eat, Katie? And what was with that question of me wanting you to be fat yesterday?"  
  
'Shit. Shit, shit, shit, shit, shit,' Katie thought bitterly. "Oliver, I-" she glared at an especially long blade of grass moving in the wind. "I don't know how to tell you."  
  
"Tell me what?"  
  
"I don't eat because..." Her voice dropped to just below a whisper, but Oliver was close enough that he heard. "I'm afraid of being fat."  
  
Oliver was quiet, but his blush was entirely gone. He was staring at the same long blade of grass, blinking once or twice as he digested the information. "You? You of all people are afraid of being fat?"  
  
"What are you saying?"  
  
He sort of laugh-sighed, as though the question asked wasn't quite the smartest question. "You're skeletal! You're killing your body... because you think you're fat?"  
  
Oliver wasn't putting it the way Katie liked. "I'm not 'skeletal,' Oliver..."  
  
He reached up and lifted her shirt, showing a bare tummy. Katie couldn't remember it being that sucked in when she'd left home. He dropped it and pulled his hand back towards his body.  
  
"You - you can't do this to yourself, Katie," he said sternly. "I won't let you."  
  
"There's nothing you can do," she snapped. "I'm the thinnest I've ever been, and everyone's noticed! I'm not hurting myself, I take vitamin pills almost every morning."  
  
Oliver's mouth was hanging open as though he couldn't believe what he was hearing. "Do you seriously believe yourself?"  
  
Katie didn't answer. How could she?  
  
"You seriously think that by starving yourself, people are going to think you're prettier?"  
  
Wow, had he said that wrong thing. Katie was suddenly furious. She'd done this for him! All for him! And now he was saying she was TOO skinny? How was this possible?  
  
"You don't even know what you're talking about, Oliver Wood!" she sputtered, jumping up. "What do I care about what you think? You're just a stuck-up, Quidditch-obsessed..." 'Dammit, what's the word? Oh, fuck it.' "Loser!"  
  
With that horrible ending, Katie stomped back to the castle. Most everyone had left the Great Hall and headed off to enjoy their weekend, but one person, one whom Katie and Oliver had been talking quite a bit about, had remained and was looking around carefully. When he spotted Katie, he smiled viciously.  
  
"Ah, just the person I wanted to see," Flint said in a low voice, walking casually towards Katie. She glanced around quickly, but of course there was no one there. Not even Oliver had returned from being outside.  
  
"Stay away from me, you slug," Katie said loudly.  
  
Flint pulled out his wand, pointed it at Katie, and whispered, "signum clausus." Suddenly Katie's mouth felt closed shut, as though she'd just eaten superglue.  
  
"Don't you remember, Katie," Flint asked. "You told me a real wizard uses his wand. And look, I have."  
  
He took her hand and squeezed so hard she felt something shift and prepare to crack. She tried to yelp, but that was impossible. Still squeezing, though not to hard as to break her fingers, Flint took her down a hallway that led to nowhere and pressed her against the wall, smiling.  
  
"Looky looky, Bell is once again completely and totally alone," Flint said. He watched as Katie struggled rather helplessly and continued, "You know, that spell can only be broken by a kiss from the person who casts it. Now, no screaming, Bell..."  
  
He leaned in and pressed his thick, heavy lips against hers for a long kiss. When he finally let her go, she opened her mouth to speak, but the words she'd planned to say we said by another. "Fuck of, Flint!"  
  
Flint whirled around to see Fred, George, and Oliver all pointing their wands at him, looking very pissed. "Lay a hand on her and you won't live to regret it," Oliver, the same voice as before, muttered.  
  
"Do I detect a death threat?" Flint asked. He grabbed Katie by the back of the shirt and pulled her back into his arms, replying casually, "You take another step and I'll kill her. My father taught me plenty of curses when I was younger."  
  
Fred dared take a step and Marcus yelled "Crucious!"  
  
Suddenly Katie's body was wracked with pain. She crumpled to the floor and screamed, unable to do anything about it. Seconds later it stopped, but she didn't dare open her eyes.  
  
"Just d-d-don't touch her," Oliver wheezed, his voice cracking.  
  
"Mr. Wood would be correct, Mr. Flint. Do not touch Ms. Bell."  
  
Katie sighed and opened her eyes to see Professor Lupin standing by the boys, his wand held at the ready. Finally Flint dropped his wand and it hit the ground with a clatter.  
  
"Boys, would you be so kind as to escort Ms. Bell to the hospital wing? Mr. Flint, please come with me."  
  
Flint did as told and Oliver and the Weasleys rushed to Katie's side.  
  
"Are you alright?" George asked quickly.  
  
"I - I'm fine," Katie whispered, slowly getting over Marcus's attack. She stood shakily and was half-carried to Madam Pomfrey, and set a few beds down from Harry. After Pomfrey had given her a brisk pepper-up potion and checked to make sure the Crucious Curse hadn't done any permanent damage to her, she joined the Quidditch group standing over Harry and listened as Oliver told Harry in his emptiest of voices that he didn't think it was Harry's fault in the least that they'd lost the Quidditch match. For Katie, that seemed ages and ages ago, but for Oliver, that mixed with everything he'd learned today had pretty much done him in.  
  
Finally, after a quiet rest of the day, Katie retired to her dormitory. Alicia and Angelina decided not to speak to her about Oliver that evening, and for that Katie was very, very thankful. Before she went to sleep, she tried to convince herself that Oliver was right about her anorexia, and failed.  
  
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Finished with this chappie! It's getting harder and harder for Katie and Co., huh? Next chapter I think I'll skip to winter break and Katie's visit with her dad. Or maybe I won't. I don't know yet. Review or I'll stop writing! 


	10. Puddlemere United and Scales

Hello hello hello again! Well, this installment is promising to be interesting. I've decided to do a little before Winter Break, then a bit with Katie's Dad (but only a bit), and back to school. Oh, and I can't be for sure, but am I correct in saying that Oliver is the back-up keeper for Puddlemere United? If I'm wrong, correct me, thanks. Good with everyone? Great, off we go.  
  
Kat6528: I know, isn't he horrible? Not much - actually, nothing - about him in this chappie, but enough in the next. Woody'sWickedWitch: Thanks for the compliments! I've got a feeling Katie and Oliver are gonna get a little closer next chapter, but who knows? Gryffindor Quidditch Gal: Lovely thoughts about that whole snogging incident, but no answers yet! I wish I could have thought of a better pet name, but Kate works. And I thought long and hard about your proposition, and decided... you CAN have him every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, but if I don't get him back I'll be coming for your head! Ash: It's so sad, isn't it? It'll get a little worse before it gets better, even more sadly. I'm happy to tell you that, slowly, Katie IS waking up. Go her! Itefaq: So many compliments, I almost can't take it! Ok, I can, keep 'em coming! ;) Like I said to Quidditch Gal, good thoughts. I will continue posting!  
  
Sunnyflower2005: Ok, I hope you get your comp back soon! You probably won't be reviewing too many, but I'll try, I promise. GuitaristChelle: Thank you thank you thank you!! Kiera: Oh, much thanks. I'm a hopeless romantic, so I'm glad I'm part of the effort to change your mind! Oliver WAS nice in the movies... Do you think I could get him to come home with me and use him as my... eh... muse? Lol. Sarah: Thanks for the review. There'll be more going on with Katie and Oliver next chapter. Like I said up there ^ there's some with Christmas break in here but not a horrible load. Don't worry, you're only twelve, no need to worry about fat. I'm glad you haven't turned to anorexia and bulimia!!  
  
ZeldaDragon, I reserved a special paragraph for you, lol. I'll tell you know, Flint won't be expelled. Sadly, it never works like that. :( He's a horrible little person, but one always needs one in a story! About band, I'm sorry for you, because we only had a week-long band camp. We got the football field, but the football players were only a little bit away and they were horrible! Eh well. This Friday we're going to the Pendleton Round Up (a big thing here in the middle of nowhere) to march in a parade, and that night we've got our first football game. I'm just a poor lowly high school freshman living in La Grande, Oregon, sadly. I think all we're doing is the Battle of the Marching Machines in Ontario, so no regionals. Eh well! What do you play? I'm a flute. Today I learned I'm either "delicate" (as according to my friend) or "wimpy" (as according to my band teacher) when I play. Poor me... Right, back to the story! Isn't Oliver great for getting Katie to open up? In case you haven't noticed, a lot is going to happen in the chapter after this. This one's just sort of setting it up, but it'll be nice anyway.  
  
I only got ten reviews and I managed to make three HUGE paragraphs out of them, lol! Ok, now the moment you've all been waiting for... on to the story!  
  
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Ch. 10 - Puddlemere United and Scales  
  
A few days later, after both Katie and Oliver had calmed down, and Harry had recovered from the Quidditch match, practice resumed. Katie's broom had flown away in the wind and couldn't be found, so she used the school brooms and decided to wait to ask for a new one. She didn't talk to her captain much, and Oliver had obviously decided to press nothing at the time. He was much too busy waiting for the match between Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff, which was easy to predict. Ravenclaw won, and with Gryffindor still in the running for the Quidditch Cup, Oliver pressed the team harder and harder.  
  
During practice Oliver was constantly glancing at Katie, as though expecting her to fall over dead at any moment. He probably had good reason, as Katie could barely keep up, but it still bothered her. Not that she was going to talk to him. She couldn't, not after what had happened.  
  
"Katie, we have to talk," Angelina said one evening, sitting on Katie's bed and nearly spilling ink all over the mattress.  
  
"What about?" Katie asked after replacing the lid on the ink bottle.  
  
"You and Oliver." Katie sighed and started to roll her eyes.  
  
"No! None of that, Katie," Alicia snapped, joining the conversation. "There's obviously something going on, and you two need to either do something about it or get over each other."  
  
Katie glared at Alicia. How dare her! She's the one that snogged him! "There's nothing going on, he's just a concerned friend."  
  
"Yeah, right," Angelina mumbled. "What about that one night? When you were asleep in his arms up here?"  
  
"I passed out on the pitch, remember? He's the one that found me, you know, and we talked. He sort of... pissed me off - that's why I was screaming - and he came up here to make amends, that's all."  
  
"You didn't kiss or anything?" Alicia groaned.  
  
Angelina glanced at Alicia with a slight shake of the head. "What were you talking about that so pissed you off?"  
  
'Quick, think up something, Bell! The dementors! They know the dementor story!' "Those dementors, they're the ones that caused me to fall. He was wondering about them. Why they hurt me and stuff."  
  
"Oh," the two of them chorused. During Christmas break of the first year of Hogwarts, Katie had stayed at her grandmothers and had watched as she had a massive heart attack. Angelina and Alicia had been some of the first to find out, and whenever Katie saw a dementor, she was reminded of the incident, of how scared she was, of the hole in her heart that her grandmother had left...  
  
'You're depressing yourself,' Katie thought bitterly. 'Say something.' "So, eh, don't worry about me and Oliver. We'll figure it out eventually."  
  
Leesh and Lina nodded and headed to their own beds, and Katie sighed. She was drifting away from her friends, she noticed. So much had happened that year. Would they ever become close, giggling friends again?  
  
*************  
  
Katie was glad to see it snow, but realized that without much body fat on her, she was incredibly cold almost all the time. Sweatshirts and sweaters were her new best friends, along with warm fires and blankets.  
  
The last Hogsmeade trip before term Katie skipped. She had bought Christmas presents for all her friends during summer vacation (hey, you get a little bored...), and she didn't really feel like spending the day with anyone. Instead, she finished all her homework and lazed around, and really wasn't all that bored.  
  
Finally Christmas break came. Katie gave Oliver, Fred, George, Alicia, and Angelina all hugs and headed on the train, towards her father's new home. She tried not to think about what she would find when she got there. Did he get married again like Mum? Had he earned a beer belly from sitting around all the time? Would she even recognize him?  
  
Finally the train stopped, and Katie took her week's work of luggage and headed out to the station. It was hard not to notice her dad standing there, holding a sign that said: THE BEAUTIFUL KATIE BELL. She smiled and ran to greet him, engulfing him in hugs.  
  
"Hi, Dad," she said into his shoulder, smiling widely.  
  
"Hey, Kate," he replied. "How's Hogwarts going?"  
  
"Ok, I guess."  
  
"Here, hand me that luggage. How about Quidditch?"  
  
"Well, we lost to Hufflepuff," she said glumly.  
  
"Yeah, I read about that in the Daily Prophet," he told her. "They said that hundreds of dementors ran onto the field. Is that true?"  
  
"Yeah. Don't worry, I was ok."  
  
"Really?"  
  
Katie shrugged. "I managed to get to the ground, but I passed out. Oliver Wood found me and took me to Madam Pomfrey's, and she gave me a pepper-up potion and everything was ok."  
  
Dad smiled. "Oliver Wood. Good man, there, good man. He's graduating this year, right?"  
  
"Mm-hmm. He said some professional Quidditch teams were looking to sign him up!"  
  
"Oh, that's great! Tell him I said good luck, ok?"  
  
"Ok."  
  
"Here we are. We're driving a car home. I hope you don't mind, but I live in an apartment complex full of muggles, and it looks a little strange if I don't have a car and I never leave my apartment."  
  
Katie nodded, not at all minding the ride home. Dad hadn't changed a bit. Well, ok, he'd grown a little beard, and he'd probably gained about ten pounds, but that was it. He still looked like Dad.  
  
Dad was sighing and looking a little nervous during most of the ride home. Finally Katie said, "Something wrong, Dad? You're looking... I dunno, strange."  
  
Dad sighed one more time. "Well, I was thinking about saving this for Christmas, but I want to play Quidditch with you, so I'll let you know now... I got you a Nimbus 2001."  
  
Katie's eyes widened in shock. "Are you serious?!" she squeaked.  
  
Dad grinned and replied, "Of course I am! My favorite Quidditch daughter is visiting me and I'm not going to get her a broom? You've got to be kidding!"  
  
Katie grinned; this would be fun.  
  
***********  
  
Returning to Hogwarts was hard. Katie had had a blast with Dad, who seemed a little lighter and more cheerful after the divorce. 'Mum is a little demanding,' Katie admitted as she sat on the Hogwarts Express, fingering the charm that hung around her neck, which Dad had given her before she left. 'I guess it was a good thing they split up then.'  
  
With renewed spirits Katie happily hugged all of her friends, Oliver especially hard. While she was hugging him he whispered, "Come with me when we get inside, ok?"  
  
Katie nodded and smiled, releasing the Quidditch star and heading towards Hogwarts. On the way there Fred and George let off a stink pellet, which they'd conveniently stuck in Draco Malfoy's pocket, and the group enjoyed a laugh over that.  
  
Once inside Oliver took Katie by the wrist and led her to the third floor, which was entirely devoid of life. Grinning from ear to ear Oliver said, "Guess what happened. Guess!"  
  
"Um... you got a new broom!" Katie suggested.  
  
Oliver's grin weakened for a moment before returning strong. "No. Guess again!"  
  
"You're going to the Quidditch World Cup next year?"  
  
"Well, yeah, but everyone already knew that. Keep guessing!"  
  
Katie shook her head. "I can't think of a thing. What is it?"  
  
Oliver was still grinning. He danced around for a moment, humming a little tune and watching Katie slowly, slowly smile.  
  
"Oliver!" she whined after a bit, "Tell me what happened!"  
  
Finally he stopped bouncing. "Ok, ok! Drum roll please..."  
  
Katie imitated a lovely drum roll on Oliver's shoulder...  
  
"Puddlemere United accepted me as a back-up Quidditch Keeper!"  
  
Katie shrieked with happiness and hugged her friend hard, dancing around the third floor with him. "Go you! That's SO awesome! Congratulations!"  
  
"Scouts have been coming to watch us last year and this year, but they didn't come to our last game because of the storm," Oliver told her. "They said it would be great to have a player with my 'enthusiasm,' and that when I'm old enough I could become the full-time Keeper!"  
  
"Well congratulations! Owl me and tell me when you play, ok?"  
  
Oliver smiled. "I'll make sure to."  
  
Suddenly there was a loud meow, and the two turned to see Mrs. Norris staring at them with wide, insolent eyes. Katie sighed.  
  
"Come on, let's go before Filch comes and puts us in detention," she said, and led Oliver - still grinning - to the Great Hall, where dinner was being served. Oliver went to sit with Percy, while Katie sat with Alicia and Angelina.  
  
"So how was your break?" Lina asked.  
  
"Pretty good," Katie replied lightly.  
  
"Did you just go home or what?" Leesh inquired.  
  
"Oh, I went to Dad's-" Katie closed her mouth quickly, accidentally biting her tongue. Leesh and Lina were eyeing her suspiciously.  
  
"You mean, you went home," Angelina clarified.  
  
'Ok Katie, time's up. You have to tell them about the divorce.' "Actually, no... I went to my dad's."  
  
"What do you mean, you went to your dad's? You're parents live together, Katie," Alicia said quickly, as though Katie had gone slightly mad.  
  
"My parents... they got divorced last February, but they didn't tell me until summer vacation. Dad lives in some little tiny town - I can't even remember the name anymore - and Mum got remarried to a muggle named Dave."  
  
Lina's mouth was hanging open, and Alicia's eyes had widened to twice their size. Katie tried not to cringe, awaiting the next question.  
  
Finally Angelina closed her mouth, licked her lips and said, "And - and you didn't tell us because... why?"  
  
"I just couldn't," Katie admitted. "It didn't really seem... I don't know, real, I guess... until I went and saw Dad. He's a lot happier now. He gave me a necklace-" Katie showed them her new necklace, "-and a Nimbus 2001."  
  
"Are you serious?" Alicia nearly shrieked. "Wow, that's awesome!"  
  
Katie grinned. "Yeah, I tried it out while we were there, and it's splendid! Perfect handling, and it's nice and fast... So you aren't mad at me for not telling earlier?"  
  
Alicia shrugged, smiling. "My mum and daddy got divorced when I was five, so I understand. I wish we'd have been able to help you through it, but I'm glad you finally said something."  
  
Katie nodded and returned the smile. "Yeah. Thanks, guys."  
  
"No problem," Angelina said.  
  
Later that evening, Katie was finishing a potions essay and watching Oliver talk to Harry about getting a broom. She distinctly heard the word "Firebolt," the newest and best broom available, but then watched Oliver go pale and mutter something about jinxes.  
  
'Poor Harry, he's got all this stuff to worry about. He-Who-Must-Not-Be- Named is after him, Sirius Black's been in Hogwarts trying to find him, and now his Quidditch captain won't stop bothering him about brooms.'  
  
Finishing her essay, she headed up to her dormitory and into the bathroom. She jumped when she saw something on the floor that hadn't been there before - a scale. A real, live scale. Why was there a scale in the bathroom? She timidly half-stepped onto it, but jumped off and hurried backwards out of the bathroom, falling onto her bed.  
  
'Should I check the scale? What if I haven't really lost all that weight? Am I still 127 and a half pounds, or have I gained weight even? Is that possible? And whose scale is that, anyway? Could Dumbledore know that I'm not eating? No, that's not possible, even for a wizard such as himself...'  
  
"Hey, Katie."  
  
Katie jumped again as Leesh walked into the room. She carefully calmed herself down and said, "Hey. Eh, whose scale is that in the bathroom?"  
  
"Lina's, I'm pretty sure. We've needed one for ages, so she finally brought one. Isn't that nice?"  
  
"Lovely."  
  
"Well, I was just dropping off this book up here. Want to join George and me for a game of exploding snap?"  
  
"No, but thanks anyway. I think I'll just go to sleep."  
  
"Ok. See you in the morning!"  
  
"'Night."  
  
Lina left. Katie was alone with the scale. Use it, or forget about it? 'Cripes, I'm going to use it sometime, right? Might as well get it over with now.'  
  
Carefully Katie stood up, took off her shoes and changed into pajamas. She walked slowly into the bathroom, trying to calm her nerves. What happened if she hadn't lost a bit of weight? What if she lost too much? That was possible too, she mused.  
  
'Ok, there's the scale. This is nothing, I've done it a billion times. If I'm lucky, I'll be down to 120. If I'm not, the most I could be is 135. Right? Right.'  
  
Katie stepped on the scale, closed her eyes, and forced them open again. 'Oh my god, this isn't possible. No, there's no way. That's... that's not right.'  
  
The scale read 85.5. Doing a bit of quick math, Katie figured she'd lost 41 pounds in... just about four months, because she wasn't eating. Usually the best she could get was two pounds a week, since she didn't exercise much, which meant eight pounds a month and thirty-two pounds in four months. At this rate, she would weigh nothing in... less than a year. Her eyes rolled back, and she fainted.  
  
************************  
  
Quite a predicament Katie's gotten herself into, hmm? At least Oliver got on his Quidditch team, right? Right?  
  
Ok, next chapter Katie and Oliver have to figure out exactly what to do about her eating disorder, and also must try to decide whether or not to tell Alicia and Angelina, and possibly even the Weasleys. Then something happens that changes everything. How will Katie deal with it? Find out next time on... Um, fanfiction.net!  
  
Oh, and review or I'll fail all of you in your classes! 


	11. Decisions

Six reviews? Oh, I'm so sad now...  
  
Anyway, sorry this took so long, I'm up to my eyebrows in school problems, home problems, and every other problem you could think of! Keep those reviews coming, they cheer me up!!  
  
Cho-Look-Alike: Thanks! Here's your update! Woody'sWickedWitch: Lol ok, ok, I won't fail you, you DID review! Much thanks! Ash: I feel so loved! Yes, finally Katie is waking up. Gryffindor Quidditch Gal: Aww... I had Oliver all weekend and now I have to give him up to you... Lol oh well. I thought about Katie hating her time with her dad, but I figured it would be nicer to not have more depressing stuff, lol. We can save that for later ;) Thanks! Itefaq: You know he will :D Sunnyflower2005: Go you! I'm so glad you reviewed! Lol I'll get to it in the next chappie, not this one tho, sry. Kat6528: Here you go!  
  
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Ch. 11 - Decisions  
  
Once again Katie woke up at the hospital wing with Madam Pomfrey, Alicia, and Angelina standing around her. It was dark outside, suggesting that it was still late evening, but Katie could have been wrong. She was lightheaded and couldn't think clearly, but within moments she realized what had happened. She had fainted in the bathroom after reading the numbers on the scale: 85.5.  
  
"Ah, glad to see you're finally awake, Ms. Bell," Madam Pomfrey said briskly. She turned to Alicia and Angelina. "Thank you for bringing her here, but please leave now."  
  
The girls nodded and left the hospital wing, and Madam Pomfrey closed the door securely. With a grave face she turned to Katie.  
  
"Ms. Bell, I took a sample of your blood to see what had caused your fainting, and apparently you are highly malnourished. I could read from it that you have been taking the vitamins I gave you, but certain nutrients - nutrients found only in foods - are missing. Care to explain?"  
  
Katie licked her lips and swallowed. She still couldn't think accurately. "I - I don't have any reason to be malnourished, Madam Pomfrey."  
  
She nodded almost curtly. "Alright then. Here, take this and get some rest, and then we'll decide what to do."  
  
Katie drank the entire potion given to her, blanched, and was out in about a minute.  
  
***********  
  
"Where's Oliver?" Alicia asked, entering the Gryffindor common room.  
  
"Oliver? He's upstairs getting ready for bed," Percy supplied. "I can go get him- Hey! Wait!"  
  
Leesh and Lina ignored Percy's shouts as they took the boys' dormitory stairs two at a time and finally arrived at the seventh years' room. They burst the door open to find Oliver half dressed with no shirt on. Lina's eyebrows jumped at the sight but Leesh was unfazed.  
  
"What in Merlin-" Oliver started, and was quickly cut off.  
  
"Katie fainted in our dormitory bathroom. We took her to Madam Pomfrey's, but we thought you should know."  
  
"Katie fainted? Do you know why?" the Quidditch captain asked, pulling on a shirt and some shoes.  
  
"Well... She was up there when I dropped off my book, before we played exploding snap, remember? She asked me whose scale was in the bathroom and didn't sound very pleased," Alicia said.  
  
"Scale?" Oliver looked concerned. "Why was there a scale in the bathroom?"  
  
"I brought it," Angelina supplied, "We've been needing one, Katie's always said so."  
  
"Oh no," Oliver breathed, and rushed out the door with his shoes still untied.  
  
"Madam Pomfrey?" Oliver called softly as he entered the hospital wing.  
  
"Yes, Wood? What is it?" Pomfrey asked.  
  
"Is Katie in here somewhere?"  
  
"She is, but she's resting. Probably won't wake up until around dinner."  
  
Oliver nodded. "I know what's wrong with her, Madam Pomfrey, but I also know that she's not going to tell you. Is it ok if I... if I talk to her when she wakes up?"  
  
Pomfrey looked slightly hurt, but finally she nodded. "Yes, that's fine. But if there's anything life-threatening involved here-"  
  
"I'll be sure to tell you," Oliver finished.  
  
************  
  
Katie woke up the second time to a much clearer mind. Carefully she sat up in bed and realized with a start that there was a large bump on the back of her head - probably from hitting the floor when she fainted. She touched it lightly and winced.  
  
Outside it was dark, and Madam Pomfrey was strolling around lighting candles. 'How long have I slept?' Katie wondered.  
  
"Awake again, Ms. Bell?" Pomfrey asked much more cheerfully than before. "That potion I gave you certainly knocked you out; Mr. Wood's been by twice since dinner."  
  
"Oliver was here?"  
  
The nurse chuckled. "Yes, he'll be back soon I'm sure. If you need me, I'll be in my office." She gestured towards a door and left.  
  
Sure enough, Oliver arrived in only a few minutes' time. He took a chair next to Katie looking incredibly worried. "Tell me what happened."  
  
Katie nodded. There was no way she was going to get around telling him, and secretly, she didn't really want to hide it anymore.  
  
"Ok, Alicia got a scale over Christmas break, you know?"  
  
"Yeah, she said so."  
  
"Well, I haven't been able to use a scale since before school, and at the time I weighed-" 'I weighed so much then! I really shouldn't tell him...'  
  
"Weighed what? Kate, if you expect me to call you fat, I won't," Oliver said immediately.  
  
'Don't be stupid, Katie, Oliver would never even think something that like.' "Well, I weighed 127 and a half."  
  
"...And what do you weigh now?"  
  
Katie's voice dropped to just below a whisper and Oliver leaned in close. "Eighty-five and a half."  
  
He sat back in his chair, for a moment utterly speechless. "S-so what's that, twenty, thirty pounds underweight?"  
  
"Um, yeah, I guess so," Katie replied very quietly. Wood wasn't really helping.  
  
"And this was over four months?"  
  
"Mmm hmm." Before Wood could say anything else Katie spoke again, this time very quickly. "Oliver, I've made a decision. I don't want to be anorexic anymore, or have to worry about my weight all the time. I want you to help me get he-" She tried to finish her word with an l and a p, but that wasn't possible, as Oliver was currently kissing her.  
  
Oh yeah, kissing her. There's no need to add that it was held a little longer than normal, but we'll add it anyway.  
  
Finally it ended and both of them sat back, shocked. Oliver finally sputtered, "I - I'm just proud of you. You finally admitted that you have a serious problem here, and that you definitely need help. That great!"  
  
Someone entered the hospital wing, but neither really noticed. Katie smiled. "Yeah, I guess that's right. I'm - I'm anorexic, a-and I need to get some help. Is there any way you can find me some information?"  
  
Oliver smiled back. "What do you think I was doing during Winter Break? I've got loads of information on eating disorders and anorexia up in my dorm. Let's go get it."  
  
"You think you're just going to saunter out with her?" Madam Pomfrey asked, walking up. "She needs her rest, and I've got to get some nutrients in her!"  
  
"I'm feeling much better, Madam Pomfrey," Katie said quickly. "Perhaps you could send me with the potion?"  
  
Pomfrey sighed. "Well, Professor Snape will have to make it anyway... I'll have him give it to you tomorrow. But get some rest tonight!"  
  
Katie and Oliver grinned, and Wood helped Katie off her bed and out the door. Neither of them noticed the boy sitting in the corner... the boy with the smile slowly crawling up his face.  
  
"I must have left it at home," Oliver said, obviously annoyed, as he came back down the Gryffindor boys' stairs. "I'll owl Dad and tell him I need the information for a report. I'm sure we'll have it within the week."  
  
Katie nodded. "Thanks, Oliver," she said softly. Even now, she almost couldn't believe he was helping her.  
  
"Well, if you really want to get over this, I'll always be there to help," Oliver said as the two sat down in a vacant corner of the room. "But I have a question."  
  
"Ask," Katie said.  
  
"Are you going to tell Alicia and Angelina? Or Fred and-"  
  
"No," Katie said before he could finish. "At least for the moment. I know that some people take it really badly, like they figure I just woke up one morning and said, 'I think I'll be anorexic today!' So no, I can't tell anyone else. And you can't either. You have to swear."  
  
"I swear on everything holy and unholy," Oliver said solemnly, holding his left hand up in the air and briskly switching it for his right.  
  
Katie laughed and nodded. "Good, thank you."  
  
"Hey! Katie!" Alicia sprinted up and picked Katie up off the ground, pulling her into a tight hug. "You're back!"  
  
"You're - damaging - me-" Katie gasped, and finally Leesh let her go.  
  
"So why'd you pass out?" Fred asked, walking up with George and Angelina close behind.  
  
"Apparently I'm malnourished or something," Katie said with a shrug. "But Madam Pomfrey's going to give me a potion that'll fix that."  
  
"Good," Lina said with a grin. "You didn't play last night, so how about a quick game or two of exploding snap?"  
  
After a moment's thought Katie consented, and the evening was briskly wasted away.  
  
**********  
  
The next day Katie couldn't help but notice that a few older Slytherins were glancing at her conspicuously, and more than normal. When she could she returned the glance, but she had no idea what was going on.  
  
In Potions Snape gave her a large glass container with a blue-ish potion in it. "Drink one cup every morning, and come to see me when it runs out," he said in a soft voice, and said nothing more to Katie during the rest of the class.  
  
As Katie entered the Great Hall for lunch, a pair of younger Ravenclaws gave her disgusted faces and one of them muttered, "She's the one they were talking about..."  
  
Katie shook her head slightly and headed to the Gryffindor table, sitting with the Weasleys. "Yo ho, Bell!" Fred said jovially, "How's everything?"  
  
"I don't know," Katie admitted. "Someone's talking about me, I think."  
  
"What do you mean?" George asked.  
  
Katie picked up a lovely-looking apple and took a bite. After she swallowed she said, "I think it's the Slytherins. They keep giving me weird looks. And then those two Ravenclaws over there gave me dirty faces and said 'She's the one they were talking about.'"  
  
"Hmm... probably starting a stupid rumor," Fred said with annoyance. "Come on George, let's go see what's going on. We'll tell you when we find out, ok, Katie?"  
  
"Ok, see you guys later," Katie muttered. She finished her apple in silence and headed to the common room to get ready for class.  
  
That evening after dinner Katie saw the Weasley brothers playing Wizard's Chess in the Great Hall, and hurried up to them. Earlier she received yet another disgusted look, and was desperate to find out what was sweeping Hogwarts.  
  
"Hey, Weasleys," she said, sitting down next to Fred.  
  
"Hello," they replied in unison.  
  
"We found out what the rumor is," George supplied immediately. "Apparently, some Slytherins have decided that you're - what was it, Fred?  
  
"Anorexic," Fred said. "They said you told Oliver yesterday while you were in the hospital."  
  
Katie's shocked expression must have worried the Weasleys, because Fred said, "We know it's not true, Katie," while George said, "We can go have a word with those Slytherins if you'd like."  
  
"Thanks for not believing such a - an absurd rumor," Katie said quickly. 'Stay calm, Bell. Oliver couldn't have done this. Just. Stay. Calm.' She scanned the room for Oliver and found him sitting next to Percy and Penny, chatting lightheartedly.  
  
"Wood," Katie said in a monotonous voice, walking up. "Could I have a word with you about Quidditch."  
  
Oliver looked almost hurt at the formality of the statements. Immediately he rose, took Katie by the arm, and led her out of the Great Hall.  
  
"What happened?"  
  
"What happened? What happened?! Why don't you tell me, you backstabbing little bastard!" Katie sputtered angrily. She'd decided to screw being calm.  
  
"Hold on a second Kate-" Oliver immediately stopped as a sharp sting erupted on his cheek; Katie had slapped him.  
  
But before either could get another word out two bodies slammed against her, pressing and holding her into a wall.  
  
"How could you not have told us!" Alicia nearly screamed.  
  
"We're your friends for Christ's sake!" Angelina added, face bright red.  
  
"I certainly suspected it, Katie, but I thought you'd TELL us about something of this magnitude!" Alicia continued.  
  
"What are you two talking about?" Oliver asked as the girls paused to breath.  
  
"Katie's anorexic!" they said in unison, and looked shocked that Oliver didn't.  
  
"Oliver knows," Katie said wearily. "He's the one that told."  
  
"Are you joking?" Oliver, Alicia, and Angelina all gasped; Oliver because Katie had told, and the girls for obvious reasons.  
  
"I told Oliver because - because I didn't know how you two would take it," Katie said softly, absentmindedly reaching up and taking hold of the necklace her dad gave her. She turned sharply to glare at the captain. "I didn't think he would tell, but obviously I was wrong."  
  
"Do you seriously think I would tell anyone, much less a group of Slytherins?" Oliver whispered. He sounded so incredibly hurt that tears formed in Katie's eyes. 'Of course he didn't, Bell. What a stupid think to suggest. Oliver's just too... too Oliver to do anything like that.'  
  
"How many secrets have you kept from us, Bell?" Lina asked, just as hurt as Oliver.  
  
"Can we talk about this later?" Katie felt her head spinning; she just couldn't take this much confusion.  
  
"No," the three said immediately, and Katie was taken up to the deserted common room. Fred and George arrived moments later, summoned by Oliver. After an hour and a half - and three butterbeers each - the group had squeezed all of the information they could out of Katie. Then it was time to decide what to do.  
  
"Do we know who started the rumors?" Oliver asked the Weasley brothers.  
  
"A Slytherin, either six or seventh year I would think," George said.  
  
"Flint," the other five declared. Marcus Flint had been tried and almost expelled from Hogwarts for his previous behavior, but unfortunately the Wizard's Council had voted against it. His suspension would start at the end of the week; only a little too late.  
  
"How did he find out?" Leesh asked.  
  
Katie's eyes suddenly widened. "Remember in the hospital wing, Oliver? Someone walked in while we were talking, just before I said I was anorexic. It must have been Flint! Dammit, I can't believe I didn't notice..."  
  
"I should have been more aware. It was stupid," Oliver chided himself, looking angry.  
  
"Let's talk to Dumbledore. He'll be able to sort everything out," Lina suggested.  
  
Katie nodded. It was no use keeping it from the adult now; they were sure to find out eventually, if they didn't already know. So, with Oliver's hand snaked deftly around her waist - to protect her, he said - the six of them headed to Professor McGonagall's office to find Dumbledore.  
  
As it happened, Dumbledore was already there, and he and McGonagall were in quiet discussion when they entered.  
  
"Hello, students. Is there something I can do for you?" McGonagall asked.  
  
"No," Katie said bluntly. She hadn't liked Professor McGonagall much anyway. "Professor Dumbledore, we need to talk to you. Privately."  
  
Dumbledore nodded to McGonagall, who went on with her work as the headmaster lead the students through the hallways and to his office. "Sugar quills," he muttered, and as the goblin jumped out of the way, leading to a moving staircase, he turned to the group.  
  
"I'm going to guess that this doesn't involve all six of you," he said.  
  
"No, it doesn't," Katie supplied. "It's really just about me."  
  
"Then would it be alright if the rest of you please wait down here?"  
  
The other five nodded reluctantly and Katie ascended the stair with Dumbledore behind her. She sat down in his office without looking around much; she was trying hard as she could to stop herself from running away.  
  
'The one thing I've been trying to do is keep this secret hidden from everyone, and now I'm telling the headmaster of Hogwarts. Of course he'll tell my parents. Everyone will know.'  
  
"So what's going on, Ms. Bell?" Dumbledore asked, sitting down. The other headmasters and headmistresses were leaning against their portraits, trying to listen to the conversation.  
  
Katie took a deep breath and nodded to herself. "I... I have a problem, Professor Dumbledore. An eating disorder, actually. Anorexia."  
  
Dumbledore nodded. "I thought as such."  
  
"You did?"  
  
"Well, yes. Our house elves - the ones in the kitchen that supply your food - told me that you're the only student in Hogwarts that hardly ever eats. I've noticed myself that you barely touch Hogwarts food. At first I thought it was because you didn't like it-"  
  
"Oh, no, it's great food!" Katie said quickly, her nervousness making her awfully jumpy.  
  
Dumbledore smiled warmly. "Yes, I know. I was planning on talking to you, but I simply haven't had the time, what with Sirius Black on the loose."  
  
Katie nodded. "Well, I told Oliver Wood and he's been helping me, but nothing's started so far. Once while I was talking to him, Marcus Flint overheard and he's spreading it around the school. Soon - soon everyone's going to know." By the end of her explanation Katie's throat was tight, and her voice hoarse. 'I'm not going to cry in front of Dumbledore. No, I won't cry. No crying.'  
  
Dumbledore was silent for a while. Finally he said, "Mr. Flint's not the best student we've had. He's given you hell this year, hasn't he?"  
  
Katie nodded. 'Whoa, did Dumbledore just use naughty language? Goodness...'  
  
"I'm sorry we haven't been able to suspend him, but his father - or should I say a friend of his father - has too much influence on our Council. Don't worry, Katie, we'll get this sorted out, alright?"  
  
"Ok," Katie said. A tear rolled down her cheek as she asked, "A-are you going to tell my parents?"  
  
"I'm afraid I have to," Dumbledore said with a touch of disappointment. "I'm bring them in along with a wizard councilor and we'll have a little meeting about all of this. And tomorrow at dinner I'll make an announcement about these rumors spreading. Will that be ok?"  
  
Katie nodded. "Thank you, Professor Dumbledore."  
  
Dumbledore once again smiled. "You're very welcome."  
  
**********************************  
  
Another chapter finished! I'm wrapping this one up, in case you haven't noticed; I'll only have one or two more chapters, probably just one. Please please please please PLEASE review!!! Thanks very much! 


	12. It Always Gets Better

A/N: Okay, it's been, like, two years since I last updated this, and I'm really super-super-sorry. You can all flame me if you want, but ONLY for being late. :P Anyway, I've finally finished it; here's the last chapter. Oh, and for some reason all my cute little stars and separators have disappeared and I don't know what to do about it... if anyone would like to inform me as to how to get those back, I'd love to know. So... read it!

It's Oliver POV!

Ch. 12 – It Always Gets Better

Oliver was sitting between Katie and George the next evening at dinner when Dumbledore stood up and tapped his spoon against a goblet. Oliver knew what this would be about. Just that day he'd been asked about Katie's "condition" three times, and Katie had received a hate-note from one of the chubbier Hogwarts students.

"It has come to my attention that rumors are spreading around Hogwarts," Dumbledore began gravely, and at least half the school glanced in the direction of the Gryffindor table. "The severity of these accusations placed on one of our students is appalling to me, and I promise that whoever started these will be caught and formally tried."

Oliver looked over at Flint, who was rolling his eyes and muttering something to a new-found girlfriend. She giggled.

"Now, every one of you needs to know that these rumors were made simply to attack the victim, and have no truth in them. If they continue to circulate, I will be forced to expel those who are persistent – or stupid - enough to continue them. With that over, please enjoy your dinner." The headmaster nodded and seated himself.

Oliver half-smiled. Already many of the Ravenclaws and Hufflepuffs were looking ashamed, and a younger Gryffindor passed a note to Katie saying he was sorry for believing the rumors. The feelings didn't include any of the Slytherins, but there was nothing Oliver could do about that.

Next to him, Katie squirmed a little. He looked over and sighed inwardly; of course, she hadn't touched any food. She was so tiny now, and so frail, Oliver was afraid to even touch her or she might break. He'd liked – no, loved her since his third year, and now it was his seventh. He would be graduating at the end of the year, and then Puddlemere United would take over. How could he live when the girl he loved was killing herself? 'I have to talk to her tonight,' he decided, and he, Katie, the Weasleys, Leesh, and Lina all left the Great Hall.

"I have a meeting with my parents, Dumbledore, and a wizard councilor tonight," Katie told Oliver that evening while they were doing their Potions homework. She looked incredibly worried, and Oliver realized that she'd written only two words down on her parchment – her name.

"Don't worry about it," Oliver replied soothingly. "Your parents are going to support you, and now you'll really be able to get the help you need."

Katie nodded rather reluctantly. After another hour or so, she got up and left Gryffindor tower, staring at the floor and looking a little green.

'I can't tell Katie tonight,' Oliver thought sadly. 'I'll tell her tomorrow morning, during breakfast.'

"Hey Ol, up for a game of wizard's chess?" Fred asked, and with an almost-real smile Oliver consented.

POV SWITCH

Katie entered the Gryffindor common room late that night to find it almost deserted. The only person there had fallen asleep on the couch by the fire. His mouth hung open slightly, and a Quidditch book on Puddlemere United lay on the floor.

The meeting had gone only slightly better than expected. Katie's parents didn't talk to each other, but agreed to help however they could. The wizard councilor, Mary Ann Lemens, had promised Katie that she would hate the first six months, but after that it would get better.

Katie smiled at the sleeping figure. "Dammit, Oliver, you're the only person in the world that could be so kind to me," she whispered. She covered him with a blanket, kissed him softly ('He'll never know'), and headed upstairs to go to sleep.

POV SWITCH

'What a weird dream,' Oliver thought the next morning while he changed into fresh clothes in his dormitory. He'd dreamt Katie had kissed him, but of course that wasn't possible. ...Was it?

Oliver dismissed the thought and, after carefully combing his hair, headed downstairs to find Miss Bell. She was sitting by herself, still trying to finish her Potions homework. Most everyone else had gone to breakfast.

"Katie, c-can we talk?" Oliver asked sheepishly, sitting down. 'Did I just stutter?'

"Sure," Katie said, almost as warily.

"Listen Kate, I... I have a confession to make." To avoid her eyes he looked down at his hands, suddenly realizing his hands were shaking. Quickly he balled them up and hoped she hadn't noticed.

Katie's eyes widened. "What's wrong?"

'She thinks I'm gay,' Oliver suddenly realized, and actually started laughing. Katie looked peeved.

"Oliver!"

"Right, sorry." Oliver cleared his throat, calmed down, licked his lips, and cleared his throat again. "Katie... we've been friends for a long time."

"Yes... we have."

"A-and I think it's time to let you know... Katie..." 'This isn't going as planned,' Oliver suddenly thought. So, he did what any normal boy should do, and leaned over and kissed his love. At first she was tense, but she quickly softened, and soon her lips were parted and the two were rather enjoying themselves in the common room. Suddenly Katie pulled away.

"Did I do something wrong?" Oliver asked quickly.

"No, I was just wondering... You're not gay, right?"

Oliver smiled and, in response, sank into her lips once more. As they broke for a breath, Katie whispered, "I guess that means no."

Oliver smiled again, laying kisses on her neck and ear. "That definitely means no."

POV SWITCH

Mary Ann Lemens hadn't been lying; the rest of the school year was worse than hell. Katie honestly didn't believe that she could have started eating again without the help of her friends: the Weasley twins, Leesh and Lina, and, of course, Oliver. There had been days when Katie felt like crying, dying, bashing her head into a wall, or doing all three, but Oliver wouldn't let that happen, and by the time the last day of school arrived, she felt like maybe she really could survive the summer.

"Oh Merlin, this crumb cake is delicious!" Lina gushed, practically inhaling an enormous wedge of cake. "Have you tried this, Katie?"

Katie laughed. "Well, I was going to, but seeing as most of your cake is down your front, I don't know how much I want to now!"

Lina didn't even take notice to the slight insult; she brushed her shirt off and reached for the juice jug.

"Hey, try this orange juice Angelina, it's the best I've ever tasted!" George suggested, shoving the jug into Lina's arms and winking conspiratorially at Katie.

Angelina, oblivious to the wink, poured herself a glass and took a sip. "It takes normal to me, George," she said. Suddenly her eyes widened and she thumped her chest roughly as though trying to dislodge something.

"George! What did you do to her?" Alicia asked, suddenly frantic.

Glaring daggers at George, who was laughing so hard he snorted, Alicia opened her mouth to speak but instead burped so loud it echoed off the walls of the Great Hall and an unusual silence followed. As solemnly as he could, Fred stood up and clapped. George briskly followed suit, then Oliver, and soon even Professor Lupin and Dumbledore were clapping. Angelina looked like she was about to keel over from embarrassment.

As the group settled down, Oliver slipped his hand into Katie's and leaned closer to her. "Can I talk to you before you leave?"

"Yeah, we'll talk on the train, k?"

Oliver smiled. "Ok."

As they found a compartment and put their trunks away, however, it seemed obvious that the two wouldn't get much time alone. Fred, George, Alicia, and Angelina had all piled into their compartment and were currently playing a game that the twins had invented; it looked like a mix between Exploding Snap and a Muggle card game called Speed. As the train started off and the quadruplet immersed themselves in their game, Oliver took Katie's hand again and quietly led her out of the compartment. They walked down to the end of the hall and stepped into the little space between the last the compartment and the wall of the train car; it was just big enough to allow the two to sit side-by-side comfortably.

"So what's up?" Katie prompted.

Oliver played with his hands a little, then looked at Katie and smiled slightly. "Well, you know I'll be busy most of the summer with training with Puddlemere United—"

"Of course, and I bet you'll have a blast!" Katie interjected quickly.

Oliver grinned. "Oh yeah, I'm really excited! But anyway, I have a couple of weeks off in July, so maybe do you think I could visit you and, you know, see how you're holding up?"

"Oh yeah, absolutely!" Katie replied, her spirits rising suddenly. "That'd be wonderful!"

"Good. I'm really proud of you, Kates... you've so strong this year, you have no idea."

Katie blushed and looked down her knees, absentmindedly playing with her necklace. "I couldn't have done it without you, Oliver."

"No, I don't think I couldn't done it without you." Oliver stooped a little to find Katie's eyes, and when he had them, kissed her softly. Katie smiled.

"Something funny?" the keeper asked, raising an eyebrow.

"No, no, of course not," Katie replied, kissing him back.

Oliver broke away this time, trying hard not to smile. "No, tell me! What's so funny?"

Katie giggled. "Nothing! Merlin, just kiss me!" She leaned towards him again but he dodged.

"Hey, I'm not kissing anybody until you tell me what you're laughing about."

Katie sighed and rolled her eyes. "Well, see, I was just picturing the twins and Leesh and Lina in our compartment, wondering what we're doing out here."

"Oh, please, I know exactly what they're thinking!"

"Really?"

"Of course; they think we're snogging."

"Well... why aren't we?"

Twenty minutes later Katie and Oliver returned to the compartment, where their long-time friends were still playing their card game. Fred looked up and grinned.

"Been snogging again, love birds?" he asked.

Katie looked over at Oliver and laughed; he had lip gloss all over his lips.

"Only a little."

A/N: So how was it? I hope the ending was good enough to make up for my extended absence, but with a whole summer ahead of me, I think I can squeeze in some writing time. I'm playing with the idea of writing a Marauders story, with James and Lily and the gang, and I might write a sequel to Changes if I feel like it. Ideas?

Review or I'll call blizzards upon your lovely sunny summer days! MUAHAHAHAHAHAHA!


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